Fly a Little Higher

It’s last February and my daughter and her friend come in the house with great drama, “Mom, you have to download this song.  We heard it on CNN Student News today.  This guy Zach Sobiech has cancer and wrote this song called Clouds.  It is sooo sad!”

I hear Zach singing the catchy chorus, “Up, up, up” and my heart bends to the joyful sorrow of the song.

A few months go by and we stop for a moment to grieve when we learn of his death.  So young, so talented, so joyful.

It’s a month ago and I get an email with an announcement that Zach’s mother Laura Sobiech has released a book called Fly a Little Higher and they want to know if I want to read and review it.  I jump at the chance.

It’s Tuesday and I’m on page 283 of a 325 page book and Laura talks in passing about the song being featured on CNN Student News, creating even more media attention that it already had.  By this time, Zach is very sick and they are near the end of their journey, this journey I’ve been traveling with them through the book.  At this time, they are ignoring much of the Internet buzz just because there are so many hateful people with unhelpful suggestions and they are intent on spending their last days in peace together.  Laura says,

Whatever was going on in cyberspace didn’t have much to do with what was going on in real life.

I wrote my post Tuesday and read this line late Wednesday.  It hits me hard.

I cry when he dies at the end.

I’ve known the end since the beginning, but experiencing it with them, it breaks your heart.

And yet.

They had so much hope, so much strength in Christ, so much love for one another.  It was beautiful to watch it unfold.

One of the only reasons the Sobiech family agreed to share the song and so much media was to raise awareness and money to help save others with cancer.  In fact, Laura’s prayer when she found out Zach was terminal was that if he did indeed take Zach, that God would do something BIG with it.  Given the success of the song and story, I’d say God is answering in abundance.

If you want to be a part of this answer to prayer, download the song, buy the book or donate to the cause.  And more importantly, heed Zach’s wisdom:

 

You don’t have to find out you’re dying…to start living. –Zach Sobiech

 

 

 

This post is part of the Fly a Little Higher Blog Tour with hundreds of bloggers raising awareness and giving hope to those with cancer. To learn more and join us, CLICK HERE!