Before he married his wife, Rafael Del Col did what many men would decide to do before a wedding. He booked a photographer, and he set up a photo shoot for himself and his wife. His wife, Tatiane “Tati” Valques, looked absolutely stunning in the resulting photos. The photos were used in the wedding announcements, and the photos decorated the young couple’s home. Unfortunately, those photos were some of the last photos of Tati alive. In 2011, Tati was killed in a fatal car accident. Compounding this tragedy, Tati was carrying the couple’s unborn child at the time.
Rafael was left alone as a widower. He was only 30-years-old. His surviving child was a 1-year-old daughter named Raisa. After Tati’s untimely death, Rafael and Raisa only had each other. Naturally, being a widower and a single dad at the same time took a huge emotional toll on Rafael. In order to cope with the heartache and daily struggles of being a single father, Rafael decided to create a blog. On his blog, Rafael wrote about his thoughts and feelings, and he sought support to help himself and to help his young daughter.
The blog was a success, and it helped other individuals cope with their own struggles in life. Rafael was grateful for the help he had received through his blog, and he was pleased that his efforts were able to help others. At this point, it seemed fitting he should honor his late wife Tati somehow. Unfortunately, Rafael couldn’t figure out what that way should be. After brooding over the issue for a while, Rafael finally remembered those early pictures taken with his wife. An idea came to him, and he knew he had discovered the perfect way to honor his late wife and Raisa’s late mother.
Rafael contacted a photographer. He showed the photos of him and his wife to the photographer. Rafael explained what he wanted to do with all of these photos taken just before Rafael and Tati’s wedding in 2009. The photographer was incredibly touched. Do you know what Rafael wanted to do? Take a look at some of the photos to figure it out for yourself.
That’s right! Rafael decided to pose exactly how he did with his beloved wife in all of those photos. To replace Tati, he had his daughter stand in the same poses as her mother. Together, Rafael and Raisa would honor Tati. The photographs are incredibly powerful. You can see how much Raisa looks like her late mother. You can also see the love in Rafael’s eyes for both Tati and Raisa. In all of the photos, you can see Rafael holding Tati and Raisa protectively, and you can sense the love both girls feel for Rafael.
The photographs have been seen by thousands of people. Taken as a whole, they remind people about the power of love and family. You can sense that Rafael and Raisa believe their family unit is forever. In their eyes, you can sense Rafael knows he will hold his beloved Tati in his arms again. You can also sense Raisa knows there will come a day where she will be able to be in the arms of her mother again. Few photographs capture such a large amount of faith, family, healing, and love.
What do you think about Rafael’s photos? Are you able to look at them with dry eyes? Few people are able to do that! Let us know what you think about the pictures below. Afterwards, hold the ones you love just a little bit tighter, and remember that love endures forever.
