Roland Merullo
A Little Love Story
© 2004
for
Steven Merullo
Kenneth Merullo
Peter Grudin
Dean Crawford
and
in memory of
Gerard X. Sikorski
Love consists in this, that two solitudes protect and touch and greet each other.
RAINER MARIA RILKE
Courage is the price that life exacts for granting peace.
– AMELIA EARHART PUTNA
A portion of the author’s earnings from this book will be donated to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.
Acknowledgments
M Y FORMER MENTOR, Michael Miller, once told me that no one writes a book alone, and in my case at least, that has always been true. I’d like to mention here some people whose names do not appear on the cover but who made contributions, small and large, to this novel.
First thanks, as always, to Amanda for her good faith, spirit of adventure, and steady love.
My gratitude also to: Alexandra and Juliana for the gift of their presence; everyone at the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, especially Dr. Preston Campbell III and Allison Tobin; Dr. Mark Pian, Dr. Geoffrey Kurland, Dr. James Yankaskas, Dr. Ronald Kahn, and Dr. Marlyn Woo, all of whom generously offered their time and expertise and helped me get the medical details right (any errors here are my own and not theirs); Dr. Janice Abbott, Ph.D., for help with the psychosocial aspects of cystic fibrosis; Dr. Robert Gerstle, Dr. Francis Duda, Dr. Anabel Quizon, and everyone at the Springfield, Massachusetts, CF center for their excellent care; Joe Merullo for his optimism and encouragement, and for suggesting I write a love