Cameron Parker is a Magic player from Lac La Biche Canada. Unlike most Magic: The Gathering players however, Cameron wasn’t well enough to play the main event but traveled the five and a half hours to spend time with his friends and play some Magic with potential new friends.

Cameron suffers from an auto immune disorder that includes fibromyalgia and spinal leaks but the doctors haven’t figured out completely what he suffers from. As a result he’s been on a heavy dose of medication that has caused part of his mental energy to be stifled and struggled with mental health issues as a result.

“Magic has been really important in my life. I spend a lot of time in the hospital, and it’s one of those games that my friends can come to the hospital and we can all play. It’s not like we can all play different video games at the hospital together, but we can play Magic.”

He was hoping, his brother from Edmonton would be able to make the trip to the Magic Fest in Calgary, but he couldn’t make the trip from work. “It’s alright though”, he said, “I still gets to spend time with his friends and that is what I love about the game.” Magic has become more than a game for Cameron at this point. It’s become a huge part of his life. He will drive two and a half hours to go to FNM most weeks, because he knows that at the end of it, he gets to spend that time with those he really cares about.

“It’s not just about the Magic for me at this point, it’s about the people. Given that I don’t get to play as much as I’d like because of my condition, the Gathering of friends keeps me coming back.”

Cameron hopes that others can learn from his story and will inspire them to continue pursuing their passions the way he’s pursued magic to spend time with his friends. His positive outlook has been really inspiring and to him “At the end of the day, it’s all about the gathering.”