The Littlest Hero

I found my wife crying at the end of July. Turns out that Mysti, one of our fellow writers over at AbsoluteWrite, had given birth prematurely -- three months prematurely -- to Simon Gabriel. He was about the size of a TV remote; his diapers, when folded up to fit him, were about the size of a AA battery. I might have gotten a little upset myself -- how could a thing that small, with the odds so great against him, hope to survive.

And yet he does. And grows. And is beginning to thrive. The works of modern medicine are nothing short of miraculous, and this chap came along in time to take advantage of them. When I was born, fifty short years ago, my chances would have been essentially nil. Twenty years ago, when my oldest boy was born, the available stock of hope would have been negligible. And even now, even given the technology and medical know-how we're accustomed to, Simon Gabriel has to be a fighter to survive. He is a fighter. And he will survive.

But here's the current problem: Simon is in Denver's NICU, receiving the best care possible. But his family lives in Wyoming.

Mysti and Rob need about $6000 to be able to temporarily move to Denver to be with their son. To help raise the cash, an series of auctions are being held on eBay, of items donated by friends and family.

Amy and I have offered our advance contributor's copies of The Ultimate Dog Lover (mine) and The Ultimate Cat Lover (Amy's) as a set called "The Pet Lover's Package." The books are not due in stores until November, so this is a real steal.

For more information, or to bid, go to:
http://simonsauctions.wordpress.com/