Attitude

A dear friend who is going through chemotherapy asked me tonight how Steve kept such a positive attitude during all of this treatments.

I told her that it wasn't always easy, and that his spirits sometimes flagged.

I told her that he was on anti-anxiety and anti-depressant meds. He spoke to a therapist early in the diagnosis.

Sometimes, when he was really feeling down, we would solicit a whole bunch of jokes from friends and family members. Or we'd watch goofy movies.

We would pray.

Steve was also blessed to live in a home with two little children. How can you not be cheerful when there's a 2-year-old dancing through the house or a 6-year-old always on the verge of a big discovery?

Sometimes I think of how unfair it is that our children don't know Steve like I do or many of you do. They had so little time with him.

But tonight I was reminded that Cooper and Katie's youth is part of what sustained Steve. He soaked up every moment with them -- with gusto! -- not just after he was diagnosed but before, too.

Steve wasn't cheerful 100 percent of the time, but he came pretty darn close. Cooper and Katie were a huge reason why. And I trust that they both will appreciate how much that means as they grow older and continue to discover what made their Dad so special.