Elsie's Notes from New England - THEMission edition

When Johnny was going through chemotherapy for leukemia (ALL), I understood for the first time that I had never known desperation in my life. David was a young Latino boy from a working-class family, about eight or nine years old. He was one of eight children. His mother may have worked previous to David's diagnosis, but when I knew of their family, she was either at home with the children, or in the hospital with David. His cancer was a rare kind of tumor, difficult to treat and not responsive to existing protocols. David's father may have been a mechanic; I am not sure, but I knew that his pay was hourly, and it was not the kind of job that offered medical benefits or family medical leave for parents. His dad got paid on the days he went to work, and that was it. When David had to go to the hospital for treatment, one parent had to go with him, meaning that his dad couldn't work - either staying home with the other kids, or going to the hospital with David. When he di...

Arthur Preston was born in 1936. Something went wrong with the delivery, and the infant boy died, but was revived. After several days on life support, the doctors determined there was nothing to be done to save him, and advised taking him off of life support. His grandfather gave him a priesthood blessing and promised that Arthur would not only live, but that he had an important mission on this earth, to do good and bless the lives of others. The tubes were removed, and the baby boy did not die after all. As a result of the profound trauma of his birth, Arthur was blind and partially paralyzed. His left hip and left arm were severely deformed. He spent most of his first years in a cast from his waist down. He was four years old before he could stand on his own, and five before he could walk. Another priesthood blessing when he was two restored his sight. His speech was delayed, and he was three before he could speak. Despite all of these delays, Arthur's mother was determined t...