In February Hunter's family received the shocking news that Hunter has an osteosarcoma, or cancer in his outer shin bone. Hunter and his Dad left Peru suddenly, but not without one final sleepover for Jonathon and Hunter and a sweet, but unsure goodbye between the two boys. There were many tears shed at our house, selfish tears from Jonathon that his best friend was leaving him, and very sweet, sincere tears over the seriousness of Hunter's sickness. We explained things the best we could without scaring Jonathon and promised that once Hunter felt up to it, we could connect the boys by Skype and they could talk all they want about Minecraft or whatever.
As we knew Hunter was undergoing chemo, we also knew that he would be very sick and lose his hair. If you know anything about chemo, they basically take you to the brink of death and then nurse you back in hopes that it will kill/contain the cancer so it won't spread. I had remembered my Dad going through chemo when I was in third grade when he was diagnosed with cancer, so I was able to relate a bit to Jonathon and we continued praying each day for Hunter. As Jonathon waited for what seemed like an eternity, finally the boys were able to "see" each other through Skype and continue their friendship across seas...the one difference this time was that Hunter had no hair. I prayed that it wouldn't bother Jonathon or Hunter--that neither one would feel uncomfortable, but would just jump back into their friendship as if they were next door...and that's what happened! It makes my heart smile just thinking about it.
After a week or so of talking almost every day, Jonathon decided that he wanted to shave his head to match Hunter. We had briefly thrown out that idea even before Hunter lost his hair, but if you know Jonathon, and how much he loathes haircuts, I was positive that he would never in a million years make such a decision. So you can imagine my shock, when Jonathon came home from school and told Hunter over Skype that he was going to shave his head!! Jeff and I were overjoyed that he would show such solidarity for his friend and promptly went out that night to buy razors to do it. The whole ordeal was a mere 2 hours, in which Jonathon sat quietly (also rare for him) and contemplated the decision he was making to show support for his friend. Jeff was inspired by Jonathon's decision, and he too shaved his head that night; we prayed for Hunter throughout the shaving, remembering the battle he is fighting. Through all this, we want this to be about Hunter, his battle, and this friendship---if people can look at Jonathon and be reminded to pray for Hunter, then that is what we want. Curiously enough, Jonathon even inspired a couple of the teachers at their school to shave their heads for Hunter!!!
I'm so proud of my son and his loyalty to his friend. We do pray for Hunter daily and know that through the sickness, the pain, the hair loss, and the uncertainty, we have a Sovereign God who is faithful, loving, and in control.
We love you Hunter, Tom, Sara, and Penielle!!!!
