Prom Date

Chris Hart was not your average 16-year-old. He was six feet eight inches tall and weighed 260 pounds. In his freshman year of high school he played on the varsity football team; he could bench press 250 pounds and squat 450. Then he was diagnosed with osteogenic sarcoma, a form of cancer. For a while it was in remission, then during his junior year it returned. A couple of months before Christmas in 1993 he was told by doctors that he probably did not have long to live.

That same year a local radio station sponsored a contest granting requests to people who wrote in with the best Christmas wishes. A member of our church wrote a letter to the radio station on Chris' behalf. Little did I know that when this letter was chosen, my world would change too.

Chris' first wish was to have a stereo system for his truck. A local electronics firm obliged. His second wish was to see a Dallas Cowboys football game. That was his favorite team and he was their greatest fan. To his surprise, he not only got to see the Cowboys play, he actually met some of them in the locker room. Chris' third wish was more difficult to coordinate because of its sensitive nature. He wanted a date with a redhead.

At this point I should probably explain that I am a redhead.

My dad came home from church one night and told me about Chris and his three wishes, especially his third wish. "Dad, I don't even know the guy," I said. How could I go on a date with him? I didn't go to his school. I had never met him. My dad, who is a minister, had visited Chris several times, and all he could say about him was that he was very nice, very tall and "big-boned." With some hesitation I said yes.

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