And a Lifetime to Go

2 years down,
And a lifetime to go.

2 years down,
And,
Dare we dream?,
55 years to go.

Dare we dream?
And dream big?

Dare we dream that
4 years from now
Steven will be a college senior,
Curled up in a chair in a dorm room,
Pouring over notes and textbooks
To get that final grade
Before he graduates from college?
And the furthest thing from his mind
Would be a brainstem tumor?

Dare we hope?
And hope high?

Dare we hope that
15 years form now
Steven will be rocking his new baby girl
As his sweet wife readies for bed
In the still and peaceful hush
That takes over a home
Filled with love?
And the furthest thought from his mind
Would be recurring renal cell carcinoma?

Dare we trust?
And trust mightily?

Dare we trust that
33 years from now
Steven will be sitting in his ivory clad office
Sipping stale coffee
And grading ordinary papers
Of the collegians who like to stop by
And visit their favorite professor?
And the furthest worry from his mind
Would be a disability?

Dare we believe?
And believe unfailingly?

Dare we believe that
55 years form now
Research that is
Will have found a cure
And Steven will be a graying grandpa
Gazing in wonderment
At the beauty he has created?
And the very furthest thing from his mind
Would be von Hippel Lindau?

It has been a choice,
A very complicated choice,
Everyday for the past two years,
To close our minds
To the darkness of this monster
And believe.

It will be a choice,
A very determined choice,
Everyday for the next 55 years,
To Believe and Hope,
And Trust,
And Dream