What happens when the people who once cared for you suddenly need you to care for them?

In this episode of the Mile High Success Podcast, Nick Elder sits down with Colorado author Thomas Denning to talk about his new book, Goodnight Mom and Dad: How Terminal Illness Transformed an Ordinary Family.

Thomas grew up as one of 12 children. He helped his family care for his mother as she faced brain cancer and, years later, helped care for his father through his own terminal illness.

Thomas shares why terminal illness is rarely just about medicine. It can change family roles, create hard decisions, test relationships, and force us to think about what truly matters.

He also shares the story behind his book and why he finally decided it was time to write it. After years of journaling and collecting hundreds of pages of notes, Thomas made writing the book his mission. He wrote every day, set a deadline, and learned to stop asking whether every word was good enough. He simply kept writing.

Nick and Thomas also talk about being present during painful times, caring for aging parents, faith, forgiveness, family, and the power of ordinary moments.

Thomas shares one especially touching story about getting Dallas Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman to call his mother just days before she passed away. It became one of those ordinary-yet-extraordinary family memories that stays with you.

As Thomas explains, we often think life has to be extraordinary to be meaningful. But sometimes meaning comes from hundreds of ordinary moments that we only understand when we look back.

Thomas hopes his book can be there for the person sitting in an emergency room late at night, driving to care for a parent, or trying to make sense of a difficult season with someone they love.

ABOUT THOMAS DENNING

Thomas Denning is an author, father, grandfather, writer, and video producer. His book, Goodnight Mom and Dad, shares his family’s experience caring for his mother and father through terminal illness and explores family, caregiving, faith, forgiveness, loss, and what matters most.