15 MONTHS LATERThe news of Lenny’s cancer sent a shock wave through the Taratoni family. Monie was devastated. For the first three weeks she went around the house riding the wild Mary Kübler Ross train of depression, denial, anger, bargaining, and acceptance. I did what I could to comfort her, to provide a net to keep us all from spiraling down, but I suffered, too. Lenny’s the closest thing I’ve ever had to a brother.
Currently, he’s in remission. He goes to work as much as possible, and the two of us golf once a week. We call our rounds on the course his “therapy sessions” and we talk about his concerns for Nancy, his regrets—how he took life for granted all these years; his bad days when he just wants to go to sleep and never wake up; and also hope that maybe, just maybe, he can beat t
