Trip to Doctor Ends in Smilesby Kalifa Tauber, Our Town Staff
For local resident Angela Larson, a trip to the Chesterfield Ridge Oncology Center did not hold the promise of a happy ending. Ms. Larson was diagnosed with bone marrow cancer last month and had since then lost ten pounds and a significant amount of hair. But hope was just around the corner the Chesterfield Ridge resident says.
Just moments prior to receiving news that she would only have four months to live, Ms. Larson was on the winning end of a not-so-winning equation. Says Larson, "I was sitting in the waiting room thinking on some pretty dark thoughts--funeral arrangements, my will--when I found this little guy." Ms. Larson holds up a crisp twenty dollar bill and smiles joyfully. "He's my angel."
Yes, Ms. Larson truly is a lucky individual and she plans on spreading her luck all around Chesterfield Ridge in the coming weeks with a planned traveling exhibition where she will visit local hospitals and schools to educate children about her discovery. "You know, it wasn't always Andrew Jackson on the bill," she said during a recent interview, her supportive family gathered behind her, "In fact, at one point it had Grover Cleveland on the front and a steam locomotive on the back. They used to call the twenty a 'double-sawbuck' and what's more is--" At this point in our conversation Ms. Larson nodded off, no doubt due to the potent painkillers her doctor had prescribed for her, hoping to ease the pain in her final four months.
"She's just tuckered out over all this twenty dollar bill excitement," said her husban, Bill Larson. "It's been a really exciting week for us...I mean, look at that thing! You'd think it was found in a bank or something the way it's so crisp, but nope, it was in a couch! Like a piece of garbage!" Adds her son, Bill, Jr., "My mom's gotta be the luckiest person I know!"
Bone marrow cancer is generally a more treatable form if detected early enough. In the case of Angela Larson, however, the cancer was not picked up on until it had spread throughout her body, ravaging her internal organs and laying waste to her overall health. Her doctor, the influential oncologist Mark Remore, said of her illness, "Once we discovered the cancer I thought we'd have a chance of fighting it, but then we did a few biopsies and ran some tests, and it had just spread to too many parts of her body.
"To make matters worse, she has a condition unique to adults call malignant fibrous histiocyoma, a condition that primarily affects the soft tissue and which, given Ms. Larson's condition, is only making things worse. I say four months at the absolute most, probably more like three. I sure wouldn't want to be in her shoes right now."
The bill is one of the new ones, green with some really pretty blues and reds. It is rectangular and looks almost brand new with the exception of a small crease in its upper right corner. "Don't worry," says Ms. Larson, "we're planning on having extensive treatments to correct the problem." Almost everyone who has seen the bill agrees that it is one of the crispest examples of legal tender they have seen. Ms. Larson caresses the bill and adds, "Doesn't Mr. Jackson look so handsome here?" The seventh president's hair does indeed hold a wavy luster to it and his gaze is as mysterious as it is noble.
At a recent visit to Stanley Tucci Elementary, Ms. Larson held a special preview of her traveling exhibition to a group of fourth-grade youngsters. Ms. Lawson lifted the bill up to the light, demonstrating the various security features of the bill and boasting of the find. When one small child raised his hand and asked about her physical appearance (which has been significantly affected by her treatments), Ms. Larson simply paused for a moment before launching into a lengthy bit of trivia regarding the oak tree that appears on the backside of the bill and the significance of the phrase "lawful currency."
But the twenty dollar bill has not been without its detractors says the family. One evening last week, Dr. Remore called Bill Larson to ask him if he thought his wife was perhaps using the twenty dollar bill to distract herself and her family from her condition. Mr. Larson recalls chuckling at the notion before telling the doctor, "Look, I know this is hard for you to understand, but the woman found a crisp Jackson just lying there in your waiting room. When you find currency like that, you don't just pocket it and buy yourself some groceries. This is big."
Larson adds, "He's probably just jealous, you know? Like, 'If only I had taken a walk into the waiting room earlier that day, I might have found the bill instead of her.' Yes, sir, my wife is one lucky lady." Ms. Larson pulls out a less prestigious twenty from her purse and adds, "Check this out, if you fold it just so, it looks like the Twin Towers burning. Pretty freaky, huh?"
So what's next for this American dream family? Says the woman of the hour, "Well it's hard to say, but right now we're all focusing on this twenty dollar bill, really trying to bring it out to the world, you know? Try to share some of the joy we've been lucky enough to find."
The family beams for a moment before Bill Jr. adds, "Well that, and, you know..."
