One of the things I learned over and over five years ago was that you never know who's going to step up and help you in your time of greatest vulnerability. The character Blanche DuBois spoke famously about how she had always "depended upon the kindness of strangers," and when you get really sick, the great truth of that line is more apparent than ever. You are pleasantly surprised and profoundly grateful for their help, whether they're lifelong friends or professionals you meet just once and then never see again. But until that hour of the abyss, until that season of terror, you really don't know who they are.
