CHAPTER 1
GROWING UP, FAMILY, ANDMY FIRST GUARDIAN ANGELEXPERIENCE
Chapel Hill, North Carolina—11/11/11
Reality slapped me in the face like Don Corleone in The Godfather slapsJohnny Fontaine and says; "You can act like a man—what's the matterwith you?" I just found out that I was diagnosed with Acute MyelogenousLeukemia (AML) at 4:00pm on Friday November 11, 2011. I justcompleted two surgeries to remove squamous cell carcinoma of the lefttonsil and papillary carcinoma of the left and right thyroid.
The flurry of news hit me dead in the chest! I was freaking out and feltlike my world just collapsed. I mean come on—I just finished fightingcancer for eight months and thought that my battle was complete. DoI have enough in the tank to battle AML and a stem cell transplant?AML can take up to two years to cure, and the odds for survival aredevastatingly low. So, the only thing I could do was act like a man andmake the best of my situation. My story will soon unfold before you.
"And in the end it's not the years in your life that count; it's the life inyour years."
This quotation by Abraham Lincoln is an important quotation to thinkabout or at least it was for me. If you take anything away from this book,please live life the best you can no matter what you are going throughcurrently. Please make every day count from this day forward.
I was born and raised in Boynton Beach, Florida. My Father, BillHamilton was born in Rye, New York and worked as a police officer inBoynton Beach. He worked hard and moved up to Chief of Police. It wasalways tough being the son of a police officer, because Dad always knewwhat I was up to every minute of the day. If I was ever in trouble, myFather knew it before I even walked through the door.
My Mother, Madeleine Hamilton was born in Holland and grew up inIpswich, Massachusetts. She moved south and met my Father at SeacrestHigh School in Delray Beach, Florida. Mom caught his eye during one ofhis shifts as a school crossing guard. They have been happily married for50 plus years.
My brother Billy is four years my senior and my only sibling. Billy wouldprove to save my life from AML and MDS with his stem cells. Billyand I were always up to no good as children, and he was always daringme to do things growing up. He and I were also constantly dreaming ofbeing medical professionals. That dream would be the start of my futurein medical sales; moreover, my education would play a major role in mysurviving 25% odds of beating my cancers.
I grew up a happy, active, and fun-loving child. I enjoyed surfing, soccer,football, fishing, running track, and of course wreaking havoc with mybrother Billy. I attended school at Delray Elementary, Barton Elementary,Lantana Junior High School, and Santaluces High School; all located inPalm Beach County. I was a hard working kid and always found odd jobsaround the neighborhood.
I will never forget a life lesson that my Father taught me back when I was13 years old. Back in the late 1970s to early 1980s, the new craze was Nikeshoes. I just had to have a pair of these magnificent shoes that many kidswere wearing in school. My Father worked as a police officer, and we couldnot afford the luxuries that were afforded by many. I also wanted the newAC/DC album Back in Black.
Dad said to me, "Son you need to go earn some money to buy thoseexpensive Nike shoes. They are out of their mind on how expensive theyare." Dad was always teaching me life lessons and street smarts.
Well, I listened to my Dad. I rode my bike to the end of my street where aplant farm was located. I was determined to get my shoes quickly so thatI could enjoy them. I knocked on the door of trailer located on the plantfarm and asked for the owner. I introduced myself and asked him if heneeded any help with loading plants on their trucks.
The owner was thrilled and offered me a job right there on the spot.I asked how much he paid and he answered that he only could afford acouple of bucks per hour. I was thrilled and told him that I could workevery weekend and after school if needed.
The first weekend I worked 12 hours, and this was tough work. I had toload semi trucks up with plants all day long. At the end of the day, I wastired, and covered in soil from head to toe. By the third weekend, I hadenough to buy my Nike shoes, a Led Zeppelin album, and the AC/DCalbum. What a vast sense of accomplishment I felt that day. My Fatherwas truly proud that I figured out a way to get my shoes and albums Iwanted. Thank you Dad for instilling the knowledge of what hard workcan get a person in life. I am not sure he appreciated the rock-n-rollblasting from the back of the house though.
Another great lesson that my father taught me was how important acollege education was back then. I will never forget this life lesson becauseit did not take me long to figure out that he was right. I had just turned18 and graduated high school from Santaluces High in Lantana, Florida.Most of my friends were already attending college, and I was not ready formore school.
My father suggested that I work with my neighbor Charlie Cale. Charlieowned a successful construction company and was always in the need ofgood help. I met with Charlie, and he was more than happy to hire me.Charlie headed out every morning at...
