I Remember

This is how you do it. Jamie Thompson: She tried to fill their minds with beautiful memories, of princess parties and water slide rides, pancakes at IHOP on Sunday mornings.

She longed to wrap her three children in a protective spell. She knew what was coming would leave a part of them forever empty.

That is why she fought so hard, enduring the blood transfusions and chemical burns and painful sores. She was haunted by the idea that her children would grow up without any memory of her.

But here, on this summer morning, Leah Siegel knew she was running out of time. As her husband walked into the bedroom, she spoke to him softly.

"I think I'm dying," she said.

"I think so, too," he said.

He crawled into bed beside her, and they were quiet.