Jordan’s Journey

When it was story time, she was the first to sit down on the floor in front of the teacher. She sat cross-legged, folding her hands in her lap. When the end of the storytelling neared, and her classmates fidgeted, attention waning, she sat with her hands still folded in her lap. Her eyes engaged the teller. Her brows shifted to project her connection with the the story. And when the last words were spoken, she was often the last one sitting, eager for another story.

Jordan takes time to pose at a recent family gathering. Her health continues to improve.

She was four but had the attention span of one much older. She could be very focused, particularly in the context of competition. It was this focus that aided her in studies and caught the attention of local school admission directors. Like other children in Pasadena, Jordan endured the admissions process at all the leading private schools. Her scores on standard tests were exemplary. We knew we had a child with strong learning potential and an apt intellect. (more…)

Call it the dramatic season end to a popular television show. A major plot point unfolds and just when you want to know what happens next … the credits roll and you have to wait four months to pick up with the story again.

I know. That’s what I did to you all.

When we last left our heroine, she received news that her tumor was shrinking and she was given leave to return home from a lengthy hospital stay. Then the air went silent and the traffic spiked on the site with friends and family wanting to know “then what?” (more…)

We hinted at it before, but now it’s official. Jordan’s latest MRI scan shows a demonstrable reduction in the base tumor. We’ve been celebrating all morning.

“You have to relax or you’ll never get this.”

I nod, forcing a smile as best I can, my lips stretched across my tightly-clenched jaw. My lungs burn as I kneel forward onto my hands. My calves spasm, reminding me that about a year has passed since I last exercised.

The author takes time from falling to pose for a portrait.

I look up to see Dean, my snowboarding instructor, stepping out of his bindings and walking towards me. He is the most patient man in Aspen. The rest of my group waits for me at the base. But I am only halfway, and I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve wiped out. (more…)