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A letter from Mac’s dad: When Mac was 4 years old, he was diagnosed with leukemia. Mac’s illness made things hard, very hard, for my family. But for one special week, Mac and the rest of my family were taken away from the troubles associated with life-threatening illness. When the volunteers from Make-A-Wish arrived at our home in New
Fairfield, Mac already knew exactly what he wanted. With a straight
face, Mac told them, “I wanna eat beans and sleep with
the cowboys.” It
was so adorable. Mac, my family and the volunteers were all delighted,
and by the end of the conversation, Mac decided that he wanted his
dream to come true at a dude ranch.  That same day, Mac began packing for his trip. He packed his little pull-along suitcase with all of his favorite toys. In the weeks leading up to our trip, not a day went by when Mac didn’t ask, “When are we going to see the cowboys?” Finally, when Mac was in the company of his heroes, the cowboys, his greatest wish had come true! Each morning, we would all go horseback riding. Sometimes we would pack a big lunch and ride all day. And the entertainment was awesome. We loved it. That was even a yodeling cowboy! We went fishing, swimming, and exploring, but without a doubt, Mac’s favorite activity was horseback riding. We were all a little sad when it came time to leave, but the memories, the stories, and the laughs remain with us forever.
Mac’s Make-A-Wish experience meant everything to our family. It allowed all of us to be taken away from our troubles. We had such a wonderful time that we forgot why we were even there! We got to forget about Mac’s illness. I am sure our experience was similar to that of other wish families, in that our wish did more for our mental spirit than anything else that happened during the trying moments of cancer treatment. We recently celebrated Mac’s 10th birthday, and the 5th anniversary of his cowboy wish, this year. With renewed hope, Mac returned home determined to beat his cancer. And today, he has been in remission for six years. Mac’s recovery and life remind me everyday of the magic and miracle of a wish. Michael, Mac’s dad |
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