It is possible to spend one's last months dying in a state of emancipation and acceptance. But, ir rarely happens, and certainly, not overnight. Life - in part - is the preparation. Western culture perceives death as defeat and cancer as the enemy that must be fought. The prolonging of life must be encouraged no matter the futility and anguish. To stop debilitating and experimental treatments is to lose hope. We Are So Lightly Here is the true story of how one ordinary man found the courage to transition from life with terminal cancer to death as a result of, paradoxically, his affirmation of life. Deborah Golden Alecson poses new ways to understand "hope."