Publisher's Synopsis
"Mr. Dahl, your son has a massive tumor in his brain and you must get him to Children's Hospital in Salt Lake City as quickly as possible, his body is shutting down." At that moment our lives changed. "It takes a real Man to have the courage to write down this story. As we struggle we some medical issues in our family, I look at the file Ive just downloaded with a strange mix of reverence and fear." - Leonardo This is the story of my son Tom and me, and of a remarkable journey down a path that no parent ever wants to walk, and that no kid should have to endure. It's also the beginning of the story of Tom, an amazing individual. Tom endured a total of 14 surgeries over 13 years. Three times, he has had a major resection, inflicting severe trauma to his brain. Three times he has had to teach himself to walk again. With each trauma of surgery came waves of pain, heavy and addictive pain medications, and resistance to those medications. This is the story of a young boy looking for the strength to battle through extreme circumstances to become a man. This is my story too--the story of a father of two, a beautiful young girl, and an energetic boy with a magnetic personality and smile. It's a story about missing clues and changing my mind about what I thought I knew, what I thought was right. It's a story about the friends and the people I love. Some I have known since I was young, some are new, and many have come and gone, but all have left a dramatic impression as they supported me in my fight to support my son. I have never bought into the idea that everything happens for a reason, and watching as my child struggled for his life and endured unbearable pain what reason could be justified? Yet inside these pages you will read about events and people that came into our lives and played roles that only they could play, at exact times needed, and were gone. I have come to realize that maybe some things do happen for a reason. This is a story about people. I am grateful for those that we have met, that helped us though our journey, that had no reason to stop their lives but they did. They changed paths and veered from their course to offer us strength to stand. Without those people, without the kindness in our society, there would be no story to tell. We intend to invest proceeds of this story in education for kids that spend their resources, and the resources of their families, in fighting cancer. Another dream would be to fund a post-doctoral research scientist searching for cures through the American Cancer Society pay if program.
