Until three years ago, 9/11 was a reminder of the evil that resides throughout this world.  Now three years ago to the day, 9/11 is a reminder of the pain and helplessness you feel when your 6 month old child is diagnosed with cancer, but it is also a reminder of how an already strong family comes together in good times and bad times.  When I think back to being 5 minutes from the house on our way home from the oncologist telling us that he thought Cutler’s rash was just a rash and probably nothing to worry about only to get the call that we must return immediately I can recall almost every detail.  If I close my eyes when I think back to it, all of my senses bring me back to that day.  I remember having to call Melanie, who was in the car behind me and telling her we needed to pull over and get in one car and head back to the hospital.  I remember Melanie convincing our pediatrician to tell us what was going on before we got to the hospital.  I remember wondering what in the hell Leukemia was and how was this going to play out.  I remember praying harder than I have ever prayed before on our way to the hospital and just repeating over and over again that Cutler will beat this.  I remember how hard it was to leave Melanie and Cutler at the hospital for the night as I had to pick up Mason from school and take him to Amazing Jakes as was previously planned.  I remember trying to choke back that horrible pizza and trying to put on a face for Mason so that he wouldn’t know what was going on despite not having any desire to eat.  I remember getting a much needed laugh from Mason as we played our way through all of the games after suffering through the pizza.  I remember getting on the internet to research AML after getting Mason to bed and almost on que getting a call from my boss telling me not to worry about work and giving me the subtle recommendation to shut down the computer as reading about it instead of hearing from the doctor was a mistake.  I remember my friends and family dropping everything to help us through our tough times.  There are many things that I remember from that day alone, but what stands out in my mind is that there is a whole lot more good in this world than there is evil.

Best Brothers