The Day Lightning Struck

The Day Lightning Struck

The day was Saturday, October 26, 2002, and I remember the day like it was yesterday. My son Nicholas had been experiencing severe pain in his legs for a few weeks, and today it traveled to his back. After a long night and morning of rubbing his leg's he began to complain about pain in his back and asked that I call 911. Nicholas said, "Mommy, I want to kill myself, the pain is too much". It was at this point that I realized that there was more going on than the doctors had been saying. Without showering, Nicholas and I went to the emergency room at Edward Hospital so he could get some relief for his pain. I called my ex-husband when we got there and asked him not to go to work and meet us at the hospital because I had a feeling that something more than muscle pain was going on.

While waiting for the results from the blood test to come back, Nicholas, Matt and I were discussing what we should pick up for dinner. Nicholas was still in pain because they did not know what was wrong with him yet but he was in good spirits. We were expecting a diagnosis of muscle aches or growing pains as this was the previous diagnosis by his pediatrician and the orthopedic doctor we had been seeing but this was not the diagnosis to be. The doctor came into the room and asked to talk to Matt and me away from Nicholas. She stated that the blood test revealed blasts that are common in patients with Leukemia. The words rang through me like a punch in the stomach and I said to Matt "this can't be true, Nicholas can't have cancer". The doctor told us she wanted to transport him by ambulance to Children's Memorial Hospital in downtown Chicago. I asked the doctor, can we go home, pack a bag and drive him to the hospital ourselves and she reluctantly agreed. While Matt and I drove Nicholas to the hospital, we bargained with god for the results at the emergency room