It’s rare to find a toy with the profound, positive message of hope and love that a tiny Tonka car, currently on auction at eBay, represents.

We buy our children many toys. Some are played with a few times, then tossed in a drawer or forgotten in the back of the closet. Others become favorites, dragged on outings, to the grocery store, to grandma?s house. Some take on even greater significance.

Simon Gabriel, a micro-preemie, was born in Denver on July 28, at 24 weeks gestation, weighing a mere 1 lb. 7 ounces and measuring 12 inches long. This toy car belongs to Simon.

Simon?s family, including his big brother Jaden, age 4, live in Wyoming. For the past month, Simon?s parents have been making the two-hour trek to the Denver NICU. But it?s wearing on them, along with all their other stresses, and they plan to temporarily re-locate the entire family as soon as possible. To help them reach their goal, fund raising efforts have been launched across the Internet by friends and associates. Simon?s mom, Mysti, is doing everything she can, as well, to raise the money needed: an estimated $6,000 in total.

She recently saw an auction on eBay for ?inappropriate items.? Essentially, the seller was auctioning the story of her husband?s affair. Mysti decided, ?Why not sell something positive in the world, instead?? The toy car she put up for auction carries a message of hope and family bonds.

The eloquent Mysti, who is a work-at-home-mom, freelance writer, Web designer, graphic artist, and more, explains: ?We have two of these cars. One has stayed in the NICU with Simon, used as a reference for Jaden to understand his brother’s size. It was important to have an object for Jaden to understand that his brother is quite small. He has seen full-term babies and understands they are much larger than his brother. The second car has remained at home for Jaden.?

Now that the hospital has changed their visitation policy, Jaden will have the chance to meet his brother in person, and will no longer need the car as a reference. Mysti will let Jaden choose two new toys that he and his brother can share.

You can bid on the toy car and an exclusive photo of Simon, never posted on the Internet, until September 1. More than just a toy, the car is a symbol of hope, love and perseverance against incredible odds. Is there a better gift you could give to your own child?

In spite of all our planning, nothing is ever certain in pregnancy and childbirth. For instance, only 5 percent of all babies are born on their actual due date. Most, however, are born sometime between 38 and 42 weeks.

Sometimes, nature sends us a real shock. On July 28, 2008, a dear online friend of mine, Mysti, gave birth to a beautiful baby boy; Simon Gabriel’s actual due date was this November.

With Mysti due a month after me, we both had expectations of going through our pregnancy together. “It’s so strange,” she said to me a few days after Simon was born, “that I’m not pregnant anymore.”

Simon was delivered, via emergency c-section, at 24 weeks, 1 day gestation, just barely making the cut-off date for having a chance of survival outside the womb. He weighed 1 lb., 7 ounces and measured 12 inches long. To offer perspective on picturing someone that small, Simon?s entire hand is about the size of his mom?s thumbnail.

Mysti, Simon and the rest of their family, which includes Simon’s dad Rob, and his brother, four-year-old Jaden, have a challenging road ahead. But little Simon is a fighter.

He is fortunate to be in one of the top NICU facilities in the country, located in Denver. Unfortunately, the hospital is approximately 2 hours from Mysti’s Wyoming home. Amongst the other challenges of keeping Simon alive and growing, fixing the hole in his heart and giving him every advantage he will need to grow up big and strong. The family is facing tremendous financial and logistical difficulties with the distance between them and Simon.

Gas prices for the two hour trip are bad enough, but, beyond that, their hope is to be able to stay together as a family while Simon is in NICU this means re-locating to the area during his stay. They have found housing a few short blocks from the hospital, and hope to raise $6,000 to make the move possible.

On her Web site, TheEchoofOne, Mysti wrote: “We want to be there for Simon each and every day while balancing the care and needs of our four-year-old too. If we are able to reach our goal, Jaden (4) will be going with us. There won’t be a day that goes by where both of our son’s will have to miss time with both parents.”

Perhaps it is because our pregnancies, until recently, were so close together, or maybe just because Mysti is a wonderful, giving person herself, her situation has touched me deeply. I felt at a loss of what to do until I realized the best thing I can do is give what I can and, more importantly, help spread the word about her and Simon’s cause.

No one can tell Simon’s story the same way Mysti can. It’s a story of love and inspiration. Simon proves that, whatever your hardships, you are never too small to fight. Please check out their story here.

If you?re moved to donate, you can click on the link “Supporting Simon” to make a donation through Paypal. Whatever you can do, please take a moment to pray or send the Universe some positive thoughts for Simon?s growth and progress.