A Song in the Night (36 page)

Most of what I have been able to do in life has been the result of the generosity and assistance of others, so it is daunting to try to thank people in a short statement. To everyone mentioned in the book, and the many more friends and family members who are not, I offer my gratitude for your many years of love and support. Your compassion and affection have made my life not only possible but wonderful.

I owe a special thanks to those who helped bring this book into being and who assisted us during the difficult years described in the last part.

Over the years people have encouraged me to write a memoir as a sequel to my parents’ book
Journey
. In that book, first published in 1975 and reissued with a new epilogue in 1984, my parents described my childhood with hemophilia. I started on a much longer autobiographical work during the years I was ill, but then I realized that my life might outrun my pages and that I should speed up the process.

In 2011 I had the opportunity to deliver a Grand Rounds
lecture at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, and I concentrated on telling five particular anecdotes from different moments in my life. The reaction proved so strong and positive that I decided to expand those stories into this memoir. I also spent much of 2011 as a candidate for the United States Senate in Massachusetts, and I wanted to offer the public an accounting of the origins and nature of my thinking. Though the campaign came to a premature close in late 2011 because of changing political circumstances, it was a wonderful experience. I thank the members of my campaign team, including Ali Denosky-Smart, Eleanor Fort, Dave Kartunen, Sam Levor, Pat Tomaino, Lynda Wik, and Matt Wilson, as well as my great interns and volunteers. They all worked hard to move the campaign forward every day, even as their candidate set aside the early morning hours to write. I salute you and thank you for believing in the democratic process.

I had many conversations at key moments that infused me with the necessary spirit to tackle this project. Chuck Collins got me fired up over lunch. Allen White offered his usual wise counsel even as he was meeting new challenges of his own. I want to single out the exceptional contribution of Owen Andrews, who met with me frequently to talk about themes; sifted through old speeches, diaries, and articles to find stories; and offered excellent editorial counsel throughout the process. With his help, I was able to focus the chapters and get them written much more swiftly than would otherwise have been possible.

The enthusiasm and professional wisdom offered by Melanie Jackson, my friend and literary agent, proved invaluable. I am deeply honored to have had the chance to work again with my editor and publisher, Nan A. Talese, who not only believed in the idea of the book but repeatedly added her elegant handwriting to the manuscript with an unerring eye as to how to make it better. With insight, diplomacy, and skill, she coaxes the very best from all of her writers, and I am fortunate to be one of them.

I want to offer special appreciation to some of the physicians who are not mentioned or are mentioned only briefly in this book, but to whom I turned for many years for assistance, including Dennis Burke, Stephen Chanock, Raymond Chung, Kathleen Corey, Winston Hewitt, Christopher Hughes, Stuart Knechtle, James Markmann, Sameer Mazhar, Sandra Nelson, Eric Rosenberg, R. Malcolm Smith, Owen Surmann, and Bruce Walker. They offered their professional skill and their personal friendship without hesitation or limit. I also thank Jean Pearce Handler and her lovely family, without whom this story would have turned out very differently.

I owe a special debt to the additional doctors, physical therapists, technicians, and especially the extraordinary nurses who gave generously of their time and talent to help me survive, endure, and recover after many medical challenges. I know I speak for everyone they have touched, standing rank upon rank to the horizon, when I say thank you.

A large circle of family and friends gathered around us over the past ten years to lift us up and move us forward.
Our neighbor Ed Lavelle, who can fix anything, took care of many necessary repairs to our old house. My sister Elizabeth stepped in to gather information and rally support at a moment when we had nearly lost hope. All the other members of Anne’s family and mine made unique and important contributions. The members of St. James’s Episcopal Church in Cambridge, Massachusetts, cared for us over many years, offering us meals, prayers, friendship, and innumerable acts of gentle support. My sons, Sam and John, provided vital help and affection even as they set out on their excellent new paths in life. During the past few years, when I was struggling and recovering from illness, my daughter, Kate, showed strength, patience, and compassion far beyond her years, and she has blossomed into an extraordinary young woman. Katie, the dedication of this book will show you that I listen to you (and love you) more than you will ever know.

The person who cared the most, bore the most, worried the most, and loved the most has been my wife, Anne. She was present through all the hidden suffering and joy. A beacon of hope at all moments, she guided me through and brought me home.