Gerard was 32 years old. When I feel such enormous grief, I am moved to a childlike state, a state of being utterly inconsolable and having a huge howl of grief inside. All I could do to console myself was to write a children's story. My friend Gerard had nephews and this book was read to these children who were so important to him. That was most satisfying for me.
Love never dies.
A person you love may die, but they will always be inside of you and as you remember them, you keep them alive in your heart. There is also a message of hope, because Uncle Leonard is still alive at the end of the book. More often than not, characters living with AIDS in children's books die at the end of the story. This book was written in 1992, and published before many of the new drugs and drug combinations were developed. Today, because of these advancements, I am more hopeful.