Thursday, February 7, 2013

Thursday, February 7, 2013

Tonight's picture was taken in February of 2009. This was classic Mattie..... a multitasker extraordinaire. In this photo Mattie was playing with his cars in a pot of water with one hand and in the other he was eating a vanilla frosted dunkin donut. The joke back then was..... "one donut a day and everything will be okay." In fact, my friend Susan sent me a song with this exact title and Mattie thought it was an absolute riot!!! Literally when Susan sent me this link, Mattie played it OVER and OVER again!!! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b36sUPqE8Gg.


Quote of the day: The role of a writer is not to say what we all can say, but what we are unable to say. ~ Anaïs Nin


I began my day with a conference call with the four key psychologists working with us to plan the think tank in California. It was interesting to be on the call with them and to hear them dialogue about research, the profession, and so forth. I remind myself often that despite their years of experience the one thing (which from my perspective is key) that Peter and I bring to the table is that we are parents of a child who had cancer. There is one thing to know the research and to be a clinician and quite another to have lived the experience. Our lived experience enables us to see things that others might not. It is hard to believe that after months of dreaming this up and planning this event, in a matter of days, it will happen. As one of the psychologists said this morning on the phone..... this event is HISTORIC. Historic and yet you can be sure NBC, CBS, and the like won't be there to cover it. Our society is a bit skewed regarding what is important and newsworthy. News is about sales and not necessarily reporting the reality. It is unfortunate, but thankfully Peter and I are not doing what we do for noteworthiness, accolades, awards, and so forth. If we were, we would have stopped our work years ago. We are driven by a much higher cause and mission and that is the memory of Mattie. Which may be why working for the Foundation can have extreme highs and lows for me.


Perhaps the role of a writer is to write what others are unable to say (but are definitely feeling or thinking), as tonight's quote eloquently states. For the past several weeks I have shared pictures of Patches with you. Patches was diagnosed with bone cancer over a month ago, and technically if I agreed with the vet to put Patches to sleep a month ago, we wouldn't of had the time we are having with her now. I know all too well what pain and suffering looks like and what dying looks like. Patches is not there yet! Despite being 17 years old and in failing health, when I wasn't feeling well today and got into bed, look who was right next to me? Nurse Patches is always on duty and for hours she remained by my side. Those who haven't experienced a bond with an animal are missing out on one of the joys in life. Animals are about unconditional love, they don't argue with you, but are instead happy and joyful to be in your presence. They can be the most loving of friends. Recently several people I have talked to have told me about their relationship with their pet and how their pet has helped their mood and depression. One woman said that her dog prevented her from carrying out her thoughts about suicide. I know for Peter and I, Patches is part of our family. Patches tries to fill a huge void in our home, and for years, Patches felt this void too. She missed Mattie that first year and even now still spends time everyday on Mattie's bed. She never did this before, but there is a connection between them. I tend not to think about life without Patches too. However, next week, we have to board her at the vet as we go to the conference, and I am naturally concerned about my Nurse Patches. She is thriving around us and little does she know that we need her to thrive too.