My heart and prayers go out to this family. We lost our six and half year old son to a brain tumor 16 years ago. I know what they are going thru. I cannot imagine having cancer yourself, and also losing a son too. If your neighbor needs someone to talk to, she can email me thru MyPage. I will be thinking and praying for them both.
Patti

How utterly heartbreaking! I am blown away by their courage.

After I posted, I went to the link, and Christian has the same type tumor that my son Justin had! Justin battled it for 7 months and lost the fight. Christian sounds very much like my son--very full of spirit. Again, I will pray for him.

My heart and prayers go out them.

holly, my thoughts and prayers are with them. It's so very, very heartbreaking.

Patti, I can't even imagine..

This all makes the aggravation of remodeling seem very insignificant.

Our thoughts and prayers are with them. God bless them all.

Please let them know that they are in our thoughts and prayers. There is a cancer cluster just across the river, because of TCE soil contamination and a dear friend of mine lost her son to brain cancer. I know how excruciating it is to watch a child have to go through this. I can't even imagine what Sheila is going through. I applaud her courage.

Oh my goodness. I will definitely pray for this family, and for yours as well, Holly (how tough for your son to deal with this kind of loss!). What a very sad thing -- life can be cruel sometimes, but they are handling it with such grace and courage.

Yes, remodeling seems so insignificant in the face of something like this...

Chris

Holly,

I will certainly pray for them.... so incredibly sad... really does put things in perspective. I am so sorry.

Karen

Holly,
I read your post early this morning and have been to a meeting and on a few errands since then. Throughout, my thoughts keep going back to your friend and her family. I'm so, so sorry for all of them, and for you and the rest of their friends and family. It always stops me in my tracks when I think of families going through this kind of a thing, while the rest of the world just keeps spinning. I love the Auden poem "Stop All the Clocks" because I feel that is how I would feel. How possibly, can the world continue to spin when this is happening?

Patti,
I'm so sorry for you too... I guess you have somehow learned to live with your grief, but you must think of your son constantly...

For both of you...

Stop All the Clocks

Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone,
Prevent the dog from barking with a juicy bone,
Silence the pianos and with muffled drum
Bring out the coffin, let the mourners come.

Let aeroplanes circle moaning overhead
Scribbling on the sky the message He Is Dead,
Put crepe bows round the white necks of the public doves,
Let the traffic policemen wear black cotton gloves.

He was my North, my South, my East and West,
My working week and my Sunday rest,
My noon, my midnight, my talk, my song;
I thought that love would last for ever: I was wrong.

The stars are not wanted now: put out every one;
Pack up the moon and dismantle the sun;
Pour away the ocean and sweep up the wood.
For nothing now can ever come to any good.
-W.H. Auden

bestyears-
Thank you. I have not seen that poem, it is beautiful, and that is exactly how you feel when you're going thru it. My other two sons are what got me thru it, they were only 5 & 3 at the time, so I had to keep going for them. I just treasure the short 6 and a half years I had with him.
Patti

You are so much more than welcome Patti. I'm glad it touched you.
Lynn

Holly,
I was very touched by your posting and the family's story. I run a nonprofit for kids with cancer and other life-threatening illnesses, and I think there's nothing more heart-breaking than these kids dying young. For one family to go through this with their child and their mother seems unimaginable to me (and I've seen a lot with my work). I will keep them in my thoughts and prayers.

Patti,
I am so sorry for your loss. I work with parents of kids with cancer and other horrible diseases, and I am always impressed at how strong and resilient they are.

Will do! This brave family needs ALL of our thoughts and prayers, I hope God will give them the strength and will to stay strong :)