Paul Thomas
Guest Columnist
About 25 years ago, I remember a very tense conversation around the dinner table. As we gathered for our family meal with my mom, dad, little brother (7) and sister (2), there was a “feeling in the air” that even a 10-year-old boy could recognize. With a calm in her voice yet a nervousness in her words, my mother explained to us that my aunt had recently been to the doctor for some tests, and those test revealed something very troubling: that my aunt had … cancer. “Cancer!” I exclaimed in a loud and scared voice that one could tell was the exact way my mom and dad felt but weren’t able to show their true feelings so as not to upset us kids. It was almost as if the word itself was evil and that merely speaking “cancer” aloud caused the room to be filled with fear.
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