Summary

Have a Purpose – The author describes the history of Beau’s diagnosis with glioblastoma, a particularly dangerous and deadly form of cancer, and the brain surgery to remove the tumor. He refers to how his personal physician, Kevin “Doc” O’Connor, took point on Beau’s care, arranging for top surgeons and specialists. The author also describes how the family gathered to support each other and Beau, and in particular focuses on their being guided to a sterile-feeling waiting room during his surgery: “I think the entire family was feeling like we were in a place we had never been, either physically or intellectually” (28).

The author then describes how, after the surgery was complete, Beau’s diagnosis got worse – how the surgeon revealed that, because of the presence of cancer cells near important blood vessels, he was unable to clear them away. The...