For My Good Friend, Alex

My good friend, Erin wrote this letter to her friends and family. I was so touched by her words, I asked if I could put it here on my blog.

Thank you Erin!

*****

I remember the day I met Alex. My own son, Erik, was only 3 months old when we walked into our first Baby Gym class...there were Alex and his mom, Sara. Alex and Erik couldn't have been more different. I had such a serious baby, with pale skin, blue eyes, and the tiniest dusting of pale blond hair that stood straight on end. Alex, though a month younger, had a full head of thick brown hair, an olive complexion, and piercing hazel-brown eyes. He smiled all the time, and was so energetic. I think it's safe to say that, from the beginning, Alex has been the one in the forefront, leading my very cautious little boy to try things he would otherwise be too fearful to do.

Sara and I (though in the beginning I knew her only as “Alex's mommy” and I think she introduced me to her husband as “Erica” the first time we met) soon became great friends. We learned that we had so much in common, from our similar experiences in trying to start our families to views on politics, parenting, and religion. I had found a kindred spirit and a lifelong friend! And it was a bonus that our little boys got along so well.

As time passed, it became obvious that Alex was going to charge headfirst into everything he could. He was the first of his friends to sit, to crawl, to walk...and then RUN! It's like he couldn't wait to get going. I remember a trip to the park when my youngest son Lukas was a baby, and Alex and Erik had just turned 2. I was the mom relaxing in the grass while my boys contentedly dug in the sandbox...as I watched Sara climbing to the top of the “big kid” jungle gym to retrieve her tiny, protesting son! Alex has always just been so adventurous and full of life.

So, when Sara called me one evening last November to tell me they had spent the afternoon in the ER, I was sure it couldn't be anything too serious. She told me that Alex had what the doctors thought was a lingering case of croup...but because his breathing wasn't getting better after several steroid treatments, they had ordered an x-ray. His thymus was enlarged and pressing on his airway. Even so, I remember “talking her down from the ledge,” thinking of all the benign possibilities. Alex was going to be fine; after all, he was the healthiest, most energetic little boy I'd ever met.

The next day, when Sara called to say they were going to the children's hospital for some more tests, I was still sure it had to be something simple. Something from which he would quickly recover. A few hours later, Sara and I cried together on the phone when she told me the results of the initial tests. I was numb and just couldn't wrap my head around his eventual diagnosis over the next couple of days: Alex has Acute Lymphoblastic Lymphoma.

To me, Lymphoma was the disease that took my Grandma Vining's life. Lymphoma was NOT an illness I associated with a healthy, energetic, 3-year-old boy. My son's best friend. My best girlfriend's child. Just a few days earlier, our main concerns were issues with sibling rivalry and me complaining about my big, pregnant aches and pains. To say Alex's diagnosis shook me to my foundation is probably an understatement.

Almost eight months later, Alex is continuing his battle against this disease. His parents are incredibly strong people, who have maintained a semblance of normal family life for Alex and his little sister, Tessa-Lynn amid extended hospital stays and chemotherapy drugs that poison not only the cancer, but Alex's healthy cells as well. They make him feel sick. They make him feel tired. They have made him lose his hair. But they are working. The treatment phase will last 2 years, and when he has gone 5 years without any detectable cancer cells, he will be considered “cured.”

I'm happy to say that Alex's prognosis is good. Thanks to Alex's vigilant, loving parents, a team of wonderful doctors, and ongoing medical research, I look forward to celebrating more of Alex's birthdays, and watching our little boys grow up together.

When I was given the opportunity to walk on Alex's team for the upcoming Light the Night event, I was so happy to say yes! The Light the Night Walk is the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's annual fundraising event. LLS is the world's largest voluntary health organization dedicated to finding cures for blood cancers. A full 75% of the Society's total expenses go directly to support research and patient services.

I have never done anything like this before, and I certainly don't expect all my friends and family to donate money to LLS. However, I felt compelled to explain to you all why I'm doing this; why it is so important to me. And if you happen to be looking for a good organization to donate to this year, I would love it if you would sponsor me and Alex's team in the upcoming walk.

If you'd like to make a tax-deductible donation of any amount (every little bit gets us closer to our goal), you can click “donate” on the widget on my Facebook Profile, or go directly to my fundraising page at: http://pages.lightthenight.org/or/PortlndL09/vininger (where you can also learn more about Light the Night and the great things that LLS is doing in the battle against blood cancers).

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this, and to allow me to introduce you to my good friend, Alex! To learn more about Alex and his ongoing battle against Lymphoma, please visit Sara's blog at: http://alexbattle.blogspot.com/