Daniel Suhr, the Mequon native who has served as The Warrior’s news columnist since our first issue in November 2005, will graduate in a few weeks from Marquette University Law School. Later this summer, Suhr will leave Milwaukee and accept a position with the Federalist Society in Washington, D.C. Suhr finished both his undergraduate and law school degrees in five years.

While an undergrad, Suhr was the 2004 Wisconsin state Chair of Students for George W. Bush and later served as the Executive Director of the Wisconsin Federation of College Republicans. Suhr was instrumental in the formation of The Warrior back in 2005.

In law school, Suhr currently serves as the President of the Marquette University Law School Federalist Society.

Suhr is the type of person who can walk into any gathering and know half the people. He is always happy to introduce his friends to anybody. A Lutheran, Suhr has been an ardent defender of Catholicism at Marquette, consistently voicing his displeasure with members of the Marquette faculty who try to hide this fact.

Suhr is an active blogger on gop3.com and a Marquette basketball season ticketholder.

The Warrior, Marquette and Wisconsin will miss him. But we must wish him good luck in all his future endeavors.

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Photos and Introduction by Robert Fafinski III

Dr. Christopher Wolfe, a Marquette political science professor for thirty years, has had a long-lasting impact on Marquette University. As The Warrior first reported on October 11, 2006, Wolfe will be leaving Marquette to form a university of his own following this May’s graduation ceremony. The author of many books, Wolfe’s staunch defense of the Catholic Faith has often stood in contrast to the many moral relativists at Marquette. Known for engaging, lecture-filled class sessions and epic exams, Wolfe’s Constitutional Law and Civil Liberties class have a unique reputation among the brave Marquette students who have endeavored to take them.

For students like senior in the College of Arts and Sciences LesleyAnn Neulreich, the tangible benefits of Wolfe’s class are clear. “It’s hard work,” she says, “It’s very intense- but upon completion, I walked out never feeling so much gratification–it’s very rewarding. I respect him as a teacher because he asks a lot of you, he’s very intelligent and has a unique lecture style I’ve never seen duplicated. It’s intimidating, but afterwards you see the purpose- the reward is greater than the time put in.”

Dr. Wolfe has been very influential to many members of The Warrior staff. He has written the following piece as a farewell address to Marquette. Also included is a gift Wolfe intends for the serious student: a reading list of the books he considers worthwhile.

by Dr. Christopher Wolfe

I have to begin my “Farewell to Marquette” column, which The Warrior has kindly invited me to write, by expressing my gratitude to many people.

First, I want to thank my colleagues at Marquette, especially the members of the political science department. Academic life is famous for its bitter infighting and backstabbing, and in thirty years at Marquette I have experienced none of that. I have been fortunate to be part of a department where my colleagues have been unusually intelligent, hardworking, amicable, and decent people. It’s also an unusually balanced department, in terms of political views and different approaches to the study of politics. We have sometimes differed and on rare occasions debates have even become (shall we say) “animated,” but civility and mutual respect have been the constant norm in our department.

Second, I have to thank the Marquette administrations over three decades, which have always treated me very fairly – even generously. Marquette has clear criteria for professional excellence, requiring a balance of good teaching and solid scholarship according to the prevailing standards of the various academic disciplines. While I think that these standards are sometimes problematic, there is much to be said for the clarity and fairness with which Marquette applies its criteria, and I am grateful for the respect and freedom it has accorded me.

Third, I want to thank my students at Marquette, and in particular the students in my constitutional law classes over the years. Every semester I tell students – because it’s true – how much I enjoy teaching constitutional law, not only because the material is intrinsically very interesting (combining both theoretical and practical questions), but also because those courses have attracted students who are above average in their intellectual ability and who are willing to work very hard – which is a blessing both for me and (as I remind them) themselves.

Fourth, even though I have been “retired” for eight years now, I have to thank the faculty and staff with whom I played “noon hoops” for many years. We got to know so well how we each played that it was impossible to just run up and down the court and play one-on-one – we had to actually play serious (team) basketball. Both the basketball and the friendships were great to have.

Having acknowledged at least some of the debts I owe (and there are many others I could thank), I guess a “farewell” also leaves me with the opportunity to offer students some advice.

First, remember that college is not primarily about vocational preparation. If you do a good job of pursuing a liberal education, the side-benefits include learning how to think clearly, read well, and express yourself well in writing and speech. That will prepare you for a plethora of jobs – it only leaves you with the admittedly challenging task of figuring out which one (or ones) to pursue. But the main goal of college is to develop your intellectual abilities and to come to understand and reflect on the “perennial” questions of human life, and especially the question “how should I live my life?”

Second, seek out a mentor who has a coherent view of education – if possible, one deeply rooted in the Western, especially Catholic, intellectual tradition. (Yes, there is much of value in non-Western and non-Catholic cultures, and we should seek those things out; but, in the final analysis, for those of us who are Christian, the achievements of Jerusalem, Athens, and Rome should provide a framework for our study.) Seek such a mentor’s advice, not only as you choose courses, but as you go along in your study.

Third, seek out friends for whom the intellectual life (in the broadest sense) is important. Intellect isn’t everything, and much of your growth in personal maturity during college years will come in activities that are not primarily intellectual (sports, dating, friendships, service opportunities). But what a university especially has to offer you is a chance to develop your intellect, and, above all, a chance to develop a broad framework for understanding reality that should help you prepare for the rest of your life – as a worker, yes, but more importantly, as a “lifelong student,” as a citizen, as a friend, as a husband or wife, as a father or mother, and as a person – ultimately, as a child of God, as a member of the Church, and as another link in the handing down of the faith to future generations. You may know other people who are smart and get good grades, but they won’t necessarily be the ones I’m talking about (though they may be). It’s the people who genuinely have the gift of “wonder” – the ones who understand the gift that life is, the gift that our human capacity to know and love is, and who respond by living a life in pursuit of “the good, the true, and the beautiful.”

Fourth, prepare for your likely future marriage well – that is, learn how to love, by coming to know the “person.” Understand that sex before marriage almost certainly will make it more difficult to think clearly and act selflessly. Don’t trivialize sex by treating it as “taking” from others, or as even as a “giving” of anything less than your full self for your whole life. Exalt it by reserving it for the unique one-flesh communion of love and life called marriage. And when you are married, don’t pass up the wonderful opportunity to have a bunch of kids – they are truly an extraordinary blessing from God.

Fifth, be grateful to your parents (and those who came before them), whose sacrifices have made it possible for you to have this extraordinary opportunity, which so many other people have not had. Repay them by using your time in college very well.

Lastly, spend your time in college as what it is: a preparation for the rest of your life. It’s not a last opportunity to live an irresponsible life of “fun.” In fact, it’s more an opportunity to learn how to have fun living a full and responsible life. Anyone who has the opportunity to spend four years pursuing a liberal education should feel tremendously blessed – just as I should, and do, feel blessed to have had the good fortune to be a part of Marquette for these thirty years.

And as a parting gift to students, Dr. Wolfe requested that The Warrior run the recommended reading list he’s compiled in his many years of study. Feel free to cut this guide out.

Dr. Wolfe’s Recommended Reading LIST

Fiction

Pride and Prejudice (and everything else) by Jane Austen

Mr. Sammler’s Planet by Saul Bellow

Diary of a Country Priest by Georges Bernanos

The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Doestoevsky

The Cypresses Believe in God by Jose Maria Gironella

The Power and the Glory by Graham Greene

The Children of Men by P.D. James

Freddy and Fredericka by Mark Helprin

The Betrothed by Alessandro Manzoni

The Viper’s Tangle by Francois Mauriac

A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter Miller

Love in the Ruins by Walker Percy

The First Circle and The Cancer Ward by Alexander Solzhenitzyn

Vanity Fair by William Thackeray

Anna Karenina and The Death of Ivan Illyich by Leo Tolstoy

Barchester Towers by Anthony Trollope

Fathers and Sons by Ivan Turgenev

Kristan Lavransdatter by Sigrid Undset

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

Present Value by Sabin Willett

A Man in Full by Tom Wolfe

Non-Fiction

Witness by Whitaker Chambers

Orthodoxy and Everlasting Man by G.K. Chesterton

The Indispensable Man by James Thomas Flexnor (biography of George Washington)

The Clash of Civilizations by Samuel Huntington

The Hidden Stream and In Soft Garments by Ronald Knox (and the collections of his sermons)

The Great Divorce, The Abolition of Man and Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis

Apologia Pro Vita Sua, A Grammar of Assent, The Idea of a University, and On the Development of Christian Doctrine by John Henry Newman (and his collections of sermons)

A Parliament of Whores, Holidays in Hell and What’s Wrong with the World by P.J. O’Rourke

Lost in the Cosmos: The Last Self-Help Book by Walker Percy

Belief and Faith, Leisure the Basis of Culture, The Four Cardinal Virtues, and Reality and the Good by Josef Pieper

Democracy in America by Alexis de Tocqueville

Joan of Arc by Mark Twain

Witness to Hope by George Weigel

Love and Responsibility by Karol Wojtyla

Hooking Up by Tom Wolfe

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Chairman of The Warrior Inc. Board of Directors and former beer columnist.

Brandon Henak, a 2006 graduate of Marquette University, still keeps his Marquette Experience a part of his daily routine. Originally from Chanhassen, Minnesota, Henak now resides in Milwaukee and serves as the Chairman of the Board of Warrior Media, Inc. While working at General Electric Healthcare in the Information Management Leadership Program, Henak still assists The Warrior with its Web site.

Formerly, Henak wrote for The Warrior as the beer columnist. Henak was instrumental in the formation process for The Warrior – now a mainstay on Marquette’s campus. He was also the long-serving Chairman of the Marquette University College Republicans.

Currently, Henak is an active blogger on two sites, gop3.com and newlycorporate.com. He’s a season ticketholder for Marquette basketball as well.

Henak shows what being a Warrior is all about: leadership, hard work and dedication to a cause.

“It’s a great day to be a Warrior.”

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For the past month, there has been a mysterious man strolling the Marquette campus sans shoes.

“I’ve never liked wearing shoes, so one day I decided that I’d stop wearing them,” he said.

Wishing to remain unknown, this 19- year-old Marquette student in the College of Arts and Sciences, said he wanted “to make sure that the reason I do this is not for the attention, and so that I’m not remembered only for this.” To maintain his anonymity, we shall call him the Shoeless Man.

The Shoeless Man is not particularly worried about ‘catching anything’ on his daily commute to class.

“Maybe if I were to step on a rusty nail or something, it would be a problem, but otherwise, I don’t see how I could really get hurt,” he said.

Recently, the only time he has worn shoes is when he has gone to dinner in the dining halls, and even then, it is only flip-flops.

“I don’t think the flip-flops could really be much more sanitary than my bare feet, but it’s a rule that you have to wear shoes,” he said.

Many observers are perplexed by his supposed comfort-based decision.

“I don’t understand why he doesn’t wear shoes,” College of Arts and Sciences Senior Russell Craze said, “It’s getting cold!”

And some are even disturbed.

“Outside on the street?” one student, who chose to remain anonymous, said, “That’s gross!”

Sixth year physical therapy graduate student Katy Ruffato, however, is proud to have the Shoeless Man in the Marquette community.

“He’s our very own shoeless Joe Jackson,” Ruffatto said. The shoeless man knows that some point he must protect his feet from the elements. This winter, he may even wear boots to combat Milwaukee’s fierce snow.

“I’ll just kick them off when I get to class,” he said.

With the exception of snow in the winter, the Shoeless Man claims there is no area of Marquette’s campus that he cannot walk without shoes.

“I don’t really even think about not wearing shoes,” he said.

His decision to go shoeless was inspired by music artist, Michael Franti, who does not wear shoes for ethical reasons. No matter what, fall fashion is all fun and games until someone steps on a rusty nail.

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Balancing her analytical side with her creative side has never been a problem for Olivia Corradin, a sophomore in the College of Arts & Sciences. She has no doubt that she wants to have a career in medical research; her major is in Biochemistry, and she’s also double-minoring in biology and math. But she is also the co-creator of Pure Dance Marquette with sophomore Sophia Anagnos. So whoever says that science and art could never come together, has obviously never met Olivia.

In pursuit of her scientific dreams, Corradin has been working in Dr. Blumenthal’s lab in Wehr Life Sciences as an undergraduate research assistant.

“I love the one-on-one training with the professor, and it starts the career that I hope to have. I would really love to go on and get my doctorate in some field of science, and then work in a laboratory setting,” Corradin said.

But in order to keep dancing, an activity that she loves, Corradin started Pure Dance to create a group that allowed people to bond over dancing while still allowing time for homework and studying. Corradin not only holds a leadership role within the group, she also choreographs. For Pure Dance’s upcoming show December 7, in the Weasler Auditorium, she choreographed five of the 14 pieces.

“I’m really excited about the show this semester. The theme for the show is ‘Wild,’ and to go with that theme, we are donating all of the proceeds to the World Wildlife Preserve,” Corradin said. The goal for each future performance is to pick a charity to go with each theme.

Not only is Corradin active on Marquette’s campus, she also teaches ballet, jazz and hip-hop at the Young Dance Academy. She teaches eight classes per week to students aged four to 18. And she absolutely loves it. She said that the best part of her job was seeing the kids progress so quickly.

“They’re always so happy; they make me happy,” Corradin said.

Being busy has become part of Corradin’s life as she tries to manage 17 credits of science and math, undergraduate research, Pure Dance and teaching dance classes. She says that she has scheduled almost every part of her day.

“I’m a list queen. If I didn’t organize my day, I would be completely lost,” Corradin said.

She has also found a really great place to study, because with all that she has to do, she cannot afford to have a lot of distractions. The fifth floor of the Memorial library is Corradin’s best-kept secret.

“It’s quiet, I have my own table, and all the people there know each other, just because we’re the only ones that come there. They all understand when I stay for a long time when I really need to study,” Corradin said.

But she feels that in the end, being busy is actually very rewarding. Not only is she paying for college by herself with the help of scholarship money and her two jobs, she has grown as a person.

“I’m at a place right now where I’m okay with who I am and who I want to be. I’m finding my dream and pursuing it,” Corradin said.

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Searching for the perfect dress can be a girl’s worst nightmare, but Lydia Erdmann-White makes dress shopping a dream come true.

White, a junior in the College of Business Administration, is the creator and owner of Prom and Pageant Spot, a designer dress store that carries top styles at reasonable prices. Owning and running any business is no easy task, but White manages to make school, a marketing internship and her shop run smoothly.

The idea for the store first came to White while dress shopping for a beauty pageant competition. High quality dresses were not available around her home in Waukesha, Wis. so White traveled to Chicago and Minneapolis to find the perfect dress.

“I went to a place in Minnesota, and it was a prom and pageant store,” White said. “They only conducted business six months out of the year like we do. So that’s kind of where I got my idea.”

White doubted her idea for a couple months, but in April 2003 Prom and Pageant Spot launched. White was only a junior in high school.

Marge Reuteman, neighbor and close family friend and White’s mother, Sharon Erdmann, work at the shop.

“I think it is amazing at that age to take that kind of risk,” Reuteman said. “But she is perfect in this particular business. She has a great eye for fashion and style.”

In the beginning, the shop carried 20 dresses. Now, more than 200 dresses are in stock. The store is open from January to May, which keeps White’s spring semesters extremely busy. White said she is taking 19 credits, works 20 hours a week at a marketing internship with Harris Data in Brookfield, then heads to the shop until 9 or 10 p.m.

“My spring semesters are very work oriented,” White said.Such a demanding schedule doesn’t leave her much free time during the spring.

White expressed frustration about missing out on time with friends, spring break, and relaxation.

But Sharon Erdmann says she doesn’t worry that her daughter isn’t experiencing the college life.

“She has her priorities, but she definitely finds time to enjoy college life,” Erdmann said. “Somehow she manages to do it all in a big way.”

While owning her own business causes White to make many sacrifices, she is happy to be doing something she truly loves. Erdmann said White makes it her personal mission to ensure each customer finds what she is looking for.

“Lydia makes sure the dress is a dream come true,” Erdmann said. “She tries to make it special for every girl.”

Erdmann went on to say she believes the store double in sales every year because of White’s customer service and gown selection.

White’s marketing internship offered her a job as a salesperson after she graduates, but she would rather open a bridal store.

“I know a lot of people in the industry, and I think it’d be nice for brides to experience a new store with a youthful twist,” White said.

No matter what she decides to do, White said she thinks it is necessary to take risks.

“Life is way too short to worry about what could go wrong,” White said, “I try to concentrate on what is going to go right.”

Popularity: 7% [?]

With travel, hours of practice and studying film, basketball consumes a heavy portion of time for any player enrolled at a college or university.

However, for Efueko Osagie-Landry, life as a Division I athlete goes well beyond highlights and box scores. In fact, it’s more like pacifiers and teddy bears.

In addition to being a steady contributor to the Marquette women’s basketball team, Osagie-Landry is also a steady contributor to the well-being of her nine-month-old daughter, Moriah.

So, how does Osagie-Landry balance these two very distinctive roles? “It’s complicated, but it’s doable because I have a lot of support and help from my teammates, my family here in Milwaukee and my husband as well,” she said. “It’s a lot of balancing and discipline in order to get it done.”

Coincidentally, both she and her husband are in the same boat. Married on April 22, 2006, Osagie-Landry and Wisconsin forward Marcus Landry have both split time between basketball, themselves and of course, Moriah. Being separated by 78 miles, however, has obviously made it difficult for the two young parents.

“It’s hard, but we understand that we have to focus because we’re both D-I basketball players and we’re both trying to win a national championship, so our first thought is with our seasons,” said Osagie-Landry. The couple sees each other on average twice a week and keeps in contact a lot over the phone, but Osagie-Landry said she gets extra support from her team for both her and Moriah. “They are really helpful,” she said. “Terri (Mitchell) allows me to take her on trips and practices, and she’s very involved with the team. We’re like a big family.”

Due to her marriage and her pregnancy, Osagie-Landry couldn’t participate with that family last season as it advanced to the NIT championship. Because of this extended absence, she underwent a rigorous off-season workout to return to playing shape and prepare for a daunting Big East schedule. Being able to return physically was the easiest part for her, however. “Honestly, physically I got in shape faster than what I did mentally,” Osagie-Landry said. “I was in the gym two or thee times a day just to make sure I’m doubling up on conditioning and trying to get my shots in. That came back fast, but mentally it’s a day-by-day situation and I’ve been getting better at that and I’m happy about it. My coach is happy too; she couldn’t be any more pleased with the progress that I’ve been making.”

And boy, has it been some progress. After averaging only about 18 minutes per game for the first 16 games of the season, that number has spiked to 25 over the past seven games: a span in which she has acquired what looks to be a firm spot in the starting rotation. Osagie-Landry’s not just receiving more minutes lately, she’s thriving on them. In the Jan. 23 game against Notre Dame, she scored a season high 15 points, grabbed five rebounds, doled out five assists, and stole the rock four times. That’s not even including the incredible block of an Irish three-point attempt and finish on the other end.

Asked about the key to her increased role, Osagie-Landry had some “motherly” advice for all young players. “Hard work and dedication is always the key,” she said. “As they say, practice makes perfect, and as always, the more you play, the more comfortable you’ll be in game situations. I’ve always been a player that’s practiced hard, and I was just waiting for it to show in games and it’s finally coming around and I’m happy about that.”

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As Danielle Pontel sits on the off-white couch in her Greenfield apartment, she seems calmed, relaxed. Her hair is pulled into a ponytail, and stray strands from around her face are pinned back.

But while the College of Arts and Sciences sophomore looks collected, she says her mind is running 100 miles a minute through a list of responsibilities longer than that of most Marquette students. Danielle, 19, is not only a full-time student, but the mother of two-year-old “Miss Haidenne.” Continue Reading

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A crowded courtyard. Voices. Sunday morning.

There are at least 200 gathered, he estimates. They are smiling, singing, praising, with hands held high and eyes closed. Can this be the right place? It was hard for Marquette sophomore Tim Blattner, a high-schooler at the time, to comprehend that most of those gathered for the worship service are HIV positive, perhaps even near death. But just two years later, Blattner tells the story of his experience at the Faith Alive AIDS clinic in Nigeria not as one of despair but as one of hope.

A family of faith
The youngest of five, Blattner was raised in a household that placed emphasis on service and faith. He watched his father, William, an epidemiologist, travel to Nigeria to volunteer at the clinic for years, but had never accompanied him.

Beginning his senior year, Blattner pursued multiple service opportunities through his high school. When he wasn’t selected for any of the school-run summer service trips, his father suggested Blattner join him.

Just a few months earlier, Blattner’s older brother went on the trip and insisted Tim give the experience a try. He gave it some thought, and then decided he would join his family and a family friend on the June trip.

On the day of their departure, Blattner and his family flew from Washington, D.C., to London and landed in Abuja, the capital of Nigeria. They spent one night in Abuja, and then drove three hours to Jos.

It rained every afternoon in Jos, and there was no running water, which made showering and going to the bathroom difficult. Sometimes, Blattner had difficulty sleeping at night because of how loud the animals were outside.

But these weren’t the things that stood out the most. A host family housed his family so the Blattners wouldn’t have to stay at a hotel or far away from the site. “They were the most kind and generous people I ever met,” he said, humbled by their enthusiasm and openness.

From service hours to lifelong mission
When he first arrived at the clinic to begin his volunteering, Faith Alive Founder Dr. Christian Isichei gave Blattner a tour of the clinic. One of the first places he visited in the clinic was the waiting room, filled wall-to-wall with one or two hundred people, half of whom would be diagnosed positive for HIV. Sometimes he would be introduced to “in-patients,” those who needed to stay overnight, because there was chance they would die in the night.

Blattner said a somber mood enveloped the room, making the moment almost unbearable.

“Their eyes were dead,” Blattner said. “It still haunts me to this day. I started crying.”

While Blattner’s original motivation for going was to earn his community service hours, he realized his presence was much greater than he could have imagined when he first decided to make the trip. “I felt I was ready to reach out and touch these people,” he said.

Recording reality
On the third day of the trip, Blattner’s digestive system took a hit from some of the native food he ate the night before, so he stayed behind during the morning session. While napping, he had a dream about his sophomore religion class and a video camera. Then the idea of creating a documentary about his experience began rolling in his head.

Blattner had never picked up a video camera or created any digital movie before in his life. But his family had brought along a camera for the trip, and he immediately felt this was the instrument he would use to share with others back home the story of his ten days.

“I just started videotaping, all week,” he said. At the end of the remaining days on the trip, he had over six hours of raw footage. He sat with patients and listened to their stories, moved by each one. “Despite the horrible reality, they are happy because they have faith,” he said.

Blattner said most of the patients at the clinic contracted AIDS through sexual intercourse and from HIV positive mothers breastfeeding their children. Prostitution is rampant in Nigeria, especially in poor communities where some women may feel that is the only way they can support their families. Blattner said a smaller amount of patients contracted the virus through blood transfusions and sharing needles.

Penrose
Blattner met many patients who came for testing, service or were being treated. But one in particular stood out to him: Penrose.

Penrose arrived at the clinic from Kenya, just ten days before Blattner. After being tested positive for HIV and starting treatment, drugs were failing him and he was near death.

When Blattner first walked into Penrose’s room, it was dark, and all he could make out was a man sitting stiffly on a chair. His arms and legs were so thin that they shaped to his bones, and Blattner could make out the outline of his skull from across the room. The only way he could describe it was “haunting.”

Some patients, like Penrose, were so near death that Blattner had to fight his body to keep from vomiting. At times, he became shaky at the mere sight of shots and blood.

“I just thought to myself, ‘What kind of a world am I living in?’ These people had nothing. I couldn’t understand it.”

Opening eyes and bringing hope
Since his return, Blattner has shown his 18-minute documentary on the trip to his high school as well as in several churches. The documentary has aided in raising approximately $5,000 in donations for the clinic as well as increasing awareness of the situation in Nigeria.

Blattner and his brother are working on a Web site for Faith Alive, www.faithalivenigeria.org, and hope to release the documentary on the Internet as well.

“I want people to know that they can help these people,” he said. “We have the technology to save these lives.”

Currently, Blattner is the treasurer of Watumishi, an AIDS awareness group on campus. He is also planning on returning to Nigeria in January and hopes to bring along a peer from Marquette.

“By me being there, I was able to provide hope for the people,” he said. In the next year or so, Blattner would like to bring a group of Marquette students to the clinic, coordinated either through Marquette or independently, so more students can have the same experience. Although it may be a daunting task to organize a trip or recruit interested students, Blattner said he is up for the challenge. “If you are called to go, the Lord will provide,” he said.

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It has been three weeks since her last visit, as 21-year-old Marquette student Katie Dorman pulls up to the Oncology Alliance office in Milwaukee. Diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma only three months earlier, she drives alone to receive her next round of chemotherapy. Before exiting the car, she removes her newly purchased auburn wig and replaces it with a green baseball cap that reads, “Life is good.”

The receptionist, who knows her by name, greets her warmly as Dorman takes a seat in one of the many recliners strew about the office. Somehow the furniture, the framed art on the walls and flowers on the windowsill are supposed to make the experience more pleasant than it is.

While receiving a standard blood count analysis, Dorman talks casually with her nurse about the mid-afternoon traffic on the ride over and her favorite line-ups on prime-time T.V. The nurse finishes up the blood work with a Scooby Doo Bandaid. “You always have the fun ones,” Dorman teases.

On her way out, an elderly man in the elevator, also battling cancer, lets out a heavy sigh and says, “You’re too young to be here.” She nods in agreement. With an average diagnosis age for lymphoma falling between 40 and 70, Dorman is one of the youngest in the office. Despite the age difference, both have a long road ahead of them.

Continue Reading

Popularity: 9% [?]