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Letters: A story of a life

In the last moments before surgery, Valentina Gonzales kisses her son Jesus Garcia, 19, goodbye. Groggy from the anesthesia, Jesus is still clutching the teddy bear given to him by a nurse. The surgery lasted seven hours. Only a small amount of the tumor was removed and within a month after the surgery, the tumor had grown back.
(Arkasha Stevenson / Los Angeles Times)
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Re “A fateful dance with death,” Dec. 23

This article is both gripping and compelling, and brings added emphasis to the cliche about life being too short.

I love the attitude this young man had about life. It is wise beyond his years, and without question a brave and admirable one.

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The last sentence was amazing to me: “It’s never too early and it’s never too late. Everyone’s life is borrowed.”

Thank you for writing this.

Olakunle Arowolo
Long Beach

I feel the article about a young man’s bout with poverty and cancer and his eventual death was in very poor taste, and definitely did not warrant being a top story on the front page of a major metropolitan newspaper such as The Times. In addition, the article continued on several full pages, replete with more depressing photos.

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There is never a good time to report on an untimely death, but coming on the heels of the Newtown, Conn., tragedy, publication just before Christmas (supposedly a time for joy) shows poor taste and seems as if it is forcing an agenda on readers.

Donald Stine
Los Angeles

This moving story hit a very soft spot with me, especially at this time of the year.

As you wrote, having to deal with death at 19 is much different than dealing with death when you are older. Each perspective is so different. Every family has a story to tell.

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Thomas Curwen’s stories are about everyday life, and he tells them with humanity and emotion.

Ralph Muniz
Whittier

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