Our family was flying on a Make-A-Wish trip for my sick son — halfway through the flight, the pilot said, “Mike, there’s one thing about this trip that you and your parents know nothing about.”

to clean them.

At the hospital, nurses learned which arm he preferred for blood draws.

Stella packed overnight bags without checking a list.

I became good at sleeping upright and lying to relatives on the phone.

“He’s having a decent day.”

“Treatment went fine.”

“We’re taking it one week at a time.”

Mike heard everything.

He also knew when we were pretending.continue reading …