A 20-YEAR-OLD dad who became a widow at just 17 has given a heartbreaking insight into his life as a single parent while still at school.
Maicon Douglas Carneiro dos Santos, from Tiangua, Brazil, has been a dad since his girlfriend, Ester, fell pregnant when he 14.
Maicon Douglas Carneiro dos Santos, 20, poses with his son Erick Dylan@douglas_santus/CEN
Maicon became a father at just 14-years-old@douglas_santus/CEN
@douglas_santus/CENThree years later, Maicon became a widowed father at 17 after Erik’s mother, Ester, died from a mosquito bite[/caption]
The couple decided to keep the baby but struggled through school, pregnancy and working part time to pay the bills.
Just three years later, however, Ester caught hemorrhagic dengue fever from a mosquito bite and died – leaving Maicon to raise their son, Erick Dylan, alone.
Maicon still recalls the magical moment Ester told him he was going to be a dad.
“She was nervous,” he told CEN. “One day she came saying she had something to tell me: ‘You’re going to be a father.’
“I was happy and told her, ‘Even though it wasn’t planned, I’m happy.’ I told her we would go through it together.”
Then, aged just 17, Maicon had to face the pain of losing his partner, the responsibility of raising a child, and the struggle to complete high school.
After recovering from the shock of Ester’s death, he quit work and settled down to become a full time dad.
He then began documenting their daily lives by posting heart-touching videos on TikTok.
However, Maicon was left shocked after his videos immediately went viral.
As a result of his social media success, he was soon able to begin earning by posting on the platform – earning more than 200,000 followers in the process.
He said: “Without Ester, the routine is different, but when I became a digital influencer, it became a bit easier to manage.
“After we wake up, I do school activities with my son, household chores, cooking, take him to school, and do the laundry.
“It never crossed my mind that it was possible to make money on the internet.
“I started recording videos more as a record and also to share my experience, and that changed our financial life.”
One recent clip shared by Maicon shows him helping his son get ready for bed.
The routine first starts off with a shower as he helps scrub all the dirt off the toddler’s face.
The 20-year-old dad then gets the boy into his pyjamas and brushes his hair.
Afterwards, he prepares two cups of hot chocolate and they curl up in their bed and watch a film before falling asleep.
Maicon said: “I went through many trials, as I have been raising my son alone since he was two years old.
“Even though he misses his mother a lot, he knows that she is a very special person and that we will never forget her.
“If she could see us today, we would tell Ester that it was very difficult to follow this journey, very painful and that we are changing.
“We will change our lives and the lives of her family.”
Elsewhere, a female bodybuilder and her friend were killed by an alleged drunk-driver after he ploughed his car into them at a crossroad.
Ariane Real da Silva, 31, and Layse Sampaio da Conceicao, 28, died from multiple injuries after their car was T-boned at around 5am on Saturday in Boa Vista, Brazil.
More tragedy ensued in the South American country the following day, when a horror plane crash left all 12 onboard dead including a 19-month-old toddler.
The tragic event happened just moments after the jet left the Rio Branco airport in Acre State on Sunday night.
Maicon and Ester struggled through school, pregnancy and working part time to pay the bills after deciding the keep their baby at just 14-years-old@douglas_santus/CEN
After recovering from the shock of Ester’s death, Maicon quit work and settled down to become a full time dad@douglas_santus/CEN
@douglas_santus/CENOnce he began documenting their daily lives on TikTok, Maicon’s videos went viral and he was soon able to begin earning by posting on the platform[/caption]
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