Uncle Mel

is my favorite person -- ever! He always has some witty thing to say, like being able to sing "Ding dong the wicked witch is dead" from the Wizard of Oz movie at just the right moment. Or mimic Scooby Doo's "huh?" when he doesn't understand the instructions I gave him. He's the guy, who when was asked if he wanted to spend three weeks camping across the country, looked at me and said "The only sleeping bag I want is the one in a tent that says Four Seasons." When my six year old daughter was crying hysterically because she broke a small work of art on display in his gallery, he just said "we cry about people, not things" and patted her head gently, knowing full well that he would be purchasing a new, broken piece for his permanent collection from the artist.

Uncle Mel, in a cruel joke, has leukemia. He is 46.
He isn't doing so well after chemo round number three.

Please think good thoughts about Mel. The universe needs more Mels.