Nando & Elijah

I'm sure by now everyone's gotten their mistletoe kissed, eggs all nogged, and stockings ripped from all that holiday sex--which by the way is the true meaning of Christmas. But for one brief moment, I'd like to take you away from all that and have you cheer with me in a chorus of "Bah! Humbugs!" Not everyone is getting their Christmas wish this year and I'm not talking about the Wall Street money-hungry tycoons out there, I'm talking about the everyday people like you, me and Elijah.

Elijah is a little boy from Iowa who went to the pediatrician after losing 8 pounds, was tired all the time, and was getting weird bruises all over (November 14 2008). Initially they thought Elijah was anemic and sent the family home while the test results came back. And later, Elijah's family learned he had AML Luekemia, a type of leukemia that only 1 in 5 children get. And a bed was ready for him at the University of Iowa Children's Hospital that very day.

It's rare that anyone under the age of 40 gets this type of Luekemia, but if undiagnosed, it can be fatal in as little as a couple of months. Associated with this rare type of Leukemia is also a gene abnormality called the FLT3 Gene (flit is how it is pronounced) and if present--there is no cure. After a few more tests, Elijah tested negative for this gene abnormality.

Elijah has undergone several testing, had a port implanted in his chest for the treatments and started 3 different types of chemo all at once. Elijah will undergo 5 to 6 rounds of chemo which will take 6 to 8 months depending on how his body handles the treatments. The 1st round and effects lasted 3 weeks.

Now for the good news--he was allowed to go home to spend Christmas at home with his family. He has an identical twin brother named Noah (both are 10-years-old),an 18 year old sister named Gabrielle and a little sister named Dallis who is 8-years-old.

Through all this, Elijah keeps his spirits up with the comfort of his great family and awesome friends. A little birdie told me that Elijah would like to recieve a hat from every state or place in where someone is praying for his cure. He's started a small hat collection already, as you can see. I thought it would be great to see how many hats we can get into his collection. I know it's one more gift to buy, but you can wait for the Christmas rush is over and I'm sure he'll be just as grateful.

And in this time of great economic decline--I'm sure we can take a moment to reflect on some great things in our own lives like our free craiglist sex ad posts, nandoism the blog, and our spirit that when combined with great people--can do great things. So I guess in a weird way, we are getting what we want this year. I take back my chorus of "Bah! Humbugs!" and instead belt out a few "Hallelujahs!"--just cause it feels right.

For info on where to send caps click here.

A little birdie also told me that he'd like to receive mail. So if you have kids his age--maybe it's a project you can work together on. I'm sure it would work miracles for his little spirit!

Send mail to:

The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society
For Elijah
8033 University Blvd., Suite A
Des Moines, IA 50325