The notes at the top of the page refer to Ted Rosenthal, a poet diagnosed with Leukemia at age 30. The poet is best known for a meditation called “How could I not be among you?” In this work, Rosenthal describes how his illness allowed him to let go of things that others think are important and instead pursue the things that he truly loves. Rosenthal writes: “I realized that I felt good for the first time in my life. Not just a good feeling like twenty minutes of good feeling, but a sustained feeling that I had nothing, and having nothing, I had nothing to lose. I could be anything. I didn’t have a self-image to worry about … I had nothing I had to be. I had nothing I had to care about. And I felt free.” This idea must have resonated with Robert just as he was beginning to work on his cancer series. Robert had always wanted people to like his pictures, yet he was about to begin a series that was likely to take him to dark and uncertain areas.