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Someone will love you for me

——Posted in "Girlfriend Look"

Compiled by Feng Guochuan

"Hi, Bruce , your book is great. I talked to the boss and he is willing to pay a lot of money to buy the movie adaptation rights of your book. I know that other companies are also calling you, but I think ours The conditions are the best, think about it carefully..."

After hanging up the phone, the 45-year-old American "New York Times" best-selling author Bruce Filler returned to his desk. Recently, there have been a lot of news from film production. The company called me, hoping to turn his new book "Council of Fathers" into a movie. In the past few months, this book full of fatherly love has touched thousands of people...< /p>

Dad can’t be a blurry face

On June 2, 2008, the early morning sunshine spread on the Cape Cod Peninsula as usual, indicating that this would be another beautiful and ordinary day. days. Bruce, a 43-year-old American writer who was working outside, suddenly received a phone call. "Sir, the blood test last week showed that your alkaline phosphatase level was high. There may be a liver or bone problem and further examination is needed." The nurse's words really surprised Bruce, who had not felt any pain recently. It’s uncomfortable! Bruce rushed to the hospital. After several examinations, the doctor came over with a serious face and a test sheet. "Unfortunately, you have a 7-inch osteogenic sarcoma on your left femur." The expert told Bruce that this is a very rare malignant tumor that has "eaten" the "central axis" of Bruce's femur and the surrounding large part of the muscle. Although it has not spread to the knees and hips yet, the situation is critical, and the tumor may metastasize at any time... After leaving the clinic, Bruce walked alone on York Street in Manhattan. He found a bench, sat down, and pulled out his phone. "Honey, where are you? Are you okay?" When his wife's familiar voice came from the phone, Bruce could no longer suppress his emotions and burst into tears.

In the following days, Bruce, accompanied by his wife Linda, found oncologist John Healy at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Hospital in New York City. According to experts, there are no more than 600 new cases of osteogenic sarcoma in the United States every year, 85% of which are teenagers under the age of 25. Because the incidence in adults is extremely low, doctors have very little experience treating it. If Bruce had developed the disease 25 years earlier, doctors could have amputated his legs. Even so, the chance of survival is no more than 6%. "This is the worst situation I have ever seen." Dr. John said, "First the tumor, part of the bone and surrounding muscle tissue must be cut out, followed by 4 months of chemotherapy." Even if Bruce is lucky enough to escape death Demonic claws, his actions will also be greatly affected. "It's either lame or limp. It's easy to walk but difficult to climb stairs."

On the way home from the hospital, Bruce fell into silence. His wife Linda is a tireless workaholic and has to take care of her two children. Just a week ago, Linda finally asked for leave after much hard work with her boss. The couple prepared for him to go to Nantucket Island to celebrate their fifth wedding anniversary. All this was ruined by sudden changes. What to do with two children? At 3 years old, Edie and Tybby have begun to have the ability to distinguish gender. Recently, they have become obsessed with ballet and all pink and purple trinkets, and are full of curiosity about everything. How to tell the innocent girls the real situation? Experts told Bruce that it is best to give the children some vague hints, such as "Dad is sick, and the doctor is helping Dad recover." Then observe whether the children behave abnormally.

When he got home, Bruce threw himself on the bed and stared at the ceiling stupidly. After a long time, Edie and Tybee ran in giggling. The two children were concentrating on practicing the ballet they had just learned. The outside world seemed to have nothing to do with them. When they were happy, the two children spun around in circles and laughed, with pink bows dancing on their heads. Bruce watched all this with tears streaming down his face again. Children cannot grow up in an environment without father's love; their future boyfriends still need to be checked by their fathers; they need their father's support when they walk on the red carpet; their memory of their father cannot be just a blurry face... thought Here, Bruce turned his back and covered his tear-soaked eyes with a towel.

That night, 43-year-old Bruce experienced the most unforgettable insomnia in his history.

If Dad is gone, love is still there

A few nights later, Bruce dreamed that he walked into the bedroom and found that the photos of the children on the desk had been replaced by unfamiliar faces. . He immediately woke up from his dream, sweating profusely. Maybe I was too afraid of losing my child. This strong man actually shed tears again. At this moment, Linda was still sleeping soundly, and the ticking of the clock highlighted the tranquility of the night. While tossing and turning, an idea suddenly popped into Bruce's mind: Why not find some "surrogate" fathers for the children?

Over the past few decades, Bruce made many close friends. Some are childhood playmates, and some are career assistants. They either share the same values ????as Bruce, or have experienced ups and downs with Bruce, or study, travel and work with Bruce. Asking them to watch over their daughter was the perfect choice.

Thinking of this, Bruce quickly got out of bed, turned on the lamp, and wrote a recruitment letter for "acting father".

"I believe that daughters will have a wonderful life, but they may lose their father. So. My dear friend, are you willing to fulfill the duties of a father for me? Are you willing to listen to their concerns? Would you like to answer their questions? Would you like to take them out to lunch often? Would you like to watch their ballet performances countless times? Would you like to buy them a new pair of shoes when they grow up? A new mobile phone? Are you willing to give them life advice? Are you willing to help them when they face difficulties? Are you willing to invite them to your family gatherings? Will you tell them I'm proud of them? Will you be my voice?"

Bruce finished the letter with tears in his eyes, then quietly went back to bed to think about the right person. After some careful consideration, Bruce identified 6 friends. He believes that these six men have rich life experiences and have the same interests as him. What a wonderful combination it would be if they "integrated" together and set up a "Father's Committee" to provide help and advice at different stages of their daughter's growth! Over the next few days, Bruce visited each of his friends with letters. They were all moved by Bruce's affection and expressed their willingness. Jeff Shamlin, a 49-year-old travel company owner, serves as the "travel dad" of the "Committee" and teaches children the common sense of travel; Max Steele, a 44-year-old youth organization leader, serves as a "caring dad" to train children Their kindness; David Black, a 50-year-old literary book agent, acts as a "fashionable dad" to guide his children to pursue their ideals in life. The 45-year-old Ben Edward is Bruce's childhood friend and plays the role of "old friend dad", telling the children about Bruce's childhood; the 41-year-old pilot Joshua Lamo serves as the "creative dad" and is responsible for cultivating children's happiness. Sensational and literary talent; Ben Sheward, a 46-year-old television producer and Emmy Award winner, serves as the "Q&A Dad" to spread the wisdom of life to children and explore the truth, goodness and beauty of life.

The night he returned from his last friend's house, Bruce was in a particularly good mood. He walked to his two daughters' bedroom door and gently pushed it open a crack. The two sisters hugged Barbie and slept quietly and sweetly. "Baby, if one day daddy is gone, daddy's love will still be there." Bruce said softly.

Daddy can still walk with you one more time

A downpour has just washed away the noisy Brooklyn area, leaving only the blue and clear sky. It was July 31, 2008. After settling his "future affairs", Bruce could finally accept chemotherapy with peace of mind. The side effects of the medication caused him severe hair loss and he had to rely on crutches to walk. When Edie and Tabby saw their father's sudden changes, they showed anxiety and sympathy. They always wet the bed in the middle of the night and had nightmares. They touched the cane again and again, trying to figure out what it was.

At 4:30 in the morning one day, Edie jumped on Tybee's bed and kept jumping, making the bed board creak. Edie was still fussing and Tabby was sobbing when Bruce entered the room. No matter how much he coaxed, the two children just couldn't listen. Bruce simply picked up Edith and forcibly put her on his bed. Bruce shed tears silently, knowing that his disease had ruined his family's life.

Unexpectedly, 5 minutes later, Etty walked into Bruce's room with big watery eyes. She climbed onto her father's lap and suddenly said: "Dad, the devil has invaded our house.

Since we can’t walk anymore, he will eat us one by one. "

"Walking", this simple word permeated Bruce's thoughts like the mushroom cloud after the atomic bomb explosion. In the daughter's consciousness, walking is the most powerful skill of her father. The walking ability of the two of them That's what my father taught me. What a terrible thing it is now that my father can't leave.

Bruce lifted the hair from his daughter's forehead, kissed her gently, and hugged her tightly. >

"I will drive the devil away, daddy has magic powers. ”

“I want you to have two good legs, legs that can walk.” "

"Well, baby, daddy will have it. But now I have to use crutches. "

"I also want the same crutches as my father. Let's learn to walk together. Okay? "

"Okay, but you have to wait until tomorrow. Go to bed now. ”

The child nodded and returned to the bedroom. Looking at his daughter’s back, Bruce couldn’t help but feel hot in his eyes.

On December 23, 2008, after full preparation, the doctor treated Bruce On the fifth day after the 15-hour operation, the daughters came to the hospital to visit their father. In order not to frighten them, Bruce asked the nurse to remove the tube and cover his wound and body with a gown and sheets. All kinds of scary equipment. My daughter Tybi asked with confusion: "Dad, how can you stand up and walk?" "As long as you love dad, dad will get better soon. Do you know where love comes from?" milk. So you should remember to drink milk every morning! "The daughter nodded thoughtfully.

In July 2009, the doctor excitedly called Bruce who was recovering at home. There were no traces of cancer cells in his bones and other parts of his body. The thigh bone The transplanted joints are also developing well. “I’m definitely telling you, your body is starting to recover. Even though the cancer cells may still come back, given your condition, you have already won the battle. "

In the days that followed, Bruce gradually got rid of one crutch. "Dad only uses one crutch now, so I can hold your hand," Tybi said, "Dad, you know what? , I love you so much that I can’t help but hug you and kiss you. When I don't have much love left, I drink milk desperately. As you said, milk is the source of love. "Bruce hugged his daughter tightly and shed tears again. Of course, this time they were tears of happiness. "Daddy loves you too, and will always love you. Dad will always be by your side. ”

For Tybee and Edie, this is not only a promise from their father, but also a proof of their father’s love for them.