Wendy: THE SUMMER

BEFORE HE ENTERED NINTH

GRADE, ZACH SOBIECH WENT OUT

FOR A RUN.

AFTERWARDS HE SAID HIS HIP

WAS HURTING.

DOCTORS ORIGINALLY THOUGHT

IT WAS MUSCLE INJURY, BUT

THE REALITY WAS MUCH WORSE.

Reporter: ZACH SOBIECH

WAS 10 YEARS OLD WHEN HE WAS

DIAGNOSED WITH A RARE FORM

OF BONE CANCER.

IN 2012, AFTER FOUR YEARS OF

SURGERIES AND TREATMENTS,

ZACH WAS TOLD HE HAD ONLY

MONTHS TO LIVE.

BEFORE ZACH LOST HIS BATTLE

IN 2013, HE WROTE A FAREWELL

SONG FOR FAMILY AND FRIENDS

CALLED "CLOUDS."

IT RECEIVED MORE THAN

11 MILLION HITS ON

YouTube AND MADE HIM AN

INTERNET SENSATION.

BUT THERE IS MORE TO HIS

STORY.

IN HER BOOK, "FLY A LITTLE

HIGHER," ZACH'S MOM, LAURA,

TELLS HOW GOD USED HER SON'S

LIFE TO INSPIRE OTHERS.

AND SHE ALSO SHARES ABOUT

ZACH'S MESSAGE THAT WE DON'T

HAVE TO FIND OUT WE'RE DYING

TO START LIVING.

Wendy: AND ZACH'S MOM,

LAURA, IS WITH US.

THANKS SO MUCH FOR BEING ON

"THE 700 CLUB."

THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME.

Wendy: THAT SONG -- I

WENT ON LINE AND LISTENED TO

IT LAST NIGHT, AND IT REALLY

MOVES YOUR HEART.

IT HAS BEEN ALMOST A YEAR

SINCE ZACH WENT TO BE IN

HEAVEN.

WHAT DO YOU MISS THE MOST

ABOUT YOUR SON?

I THINK AN EASIER

QUESTION WOULD BE WHAT DON'T

I MISS.

IT IS EVERYTHING.

HE WAS JUST SUCH A PEACEFUL

PERSON, YET HAD SO MUCH

ENERGY.

HE REALLY BROUGHT THE SPIRIT

INTO OUR HOME THAT I REALLY

MISS, BUT WE STILL FEEL

HIM.

Wendy: NOW, WHEN YOU

FOUND OUT THAT YOUR SON DID

HAVE CANCER, HE WAS 14,

RIGHT?

THAT'S RIGHT.

Wendy: YOU SAID, AND

WHEN YOU WERE STANDING THERE

IN THE DOCTOR'S OFFICE, YOU

FELT A PEACE, A VERY

POWERFUL PEACE.

TELL US ABOUT THAT.

.

YEAH.

IT WAS RIGHT AFTER WE FOUND

OUT HE HAD A TUMOR AND WE

DIDN'T KNOW WHAT IT WAS, BUT

WE KNEW IT WAS BAD.

YOU HAVE ALL OF THESE THINGS

FIRING OFF IN YOUR HEAD, ALL

OF THESE QUESTIONS AND ALL

OF THESE WHAT-IFs, AND I

REMEMBER HAVING THIS MOMENT

OF PEACE WASH OVER ME.

AND I HAD THIS VERY VIVID IM

IMAGE OF GOD'S FACE TURN

TOWARDS ME.

Wendy: AND YOU KNOW YOU

HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE

MAD OR ANGRY OR SAYING, GOD,

YOU'RE IN CONTROL HERE.

I KNEW I WAS BEING ASKED

THE QUESTION, DO YOU TRUST

ME?

AND IT WAS A BIG ANSWER TO

SAY YES.

Wendy: NOW, DURING YOUR

SON'S BATTLE, AND IT WAS

DEFINITELY A BATTLE -- HE

WENT THROUGH 10 SURGERIES,

20 POUNDS OF CHEMOTHERAPY,

AND YOU FOUND OUT -- WHEN

YOU FOUND OUT HE WAS

TERMINAL, LAURA, YOU PRAYED

SOMETHING.

WHAT DID YOU PRAY?

YEAH, THAT WAS A TOUGH

TIME.

BECAUSE IT WAS AT THIS POINT

WHERE I HAD TO DECIDE WHAT

TO PLACE MY HOPE IN.

AND DO I PRAY FOR A PHYSICAL

HEALING FOR THAT MIRACLE, DO

I PUT ALL OF MY ENERGY INTO

SEARCHING FOR THAT AND

PRAYING FOR THAT?

OR DO I JUST STEP BACK AND

SAY, OKAY, GOD, YOU KNOW

BETTER, AND ALLOW WHAT WAS

GOING TO HAPPEN TO HAPPEN.

AND THOSE TWO SEEMED TO BE

IN CONFLICT WITH EACH

OTHER.

AND I HAD THIS REAL VIVID

IMAGE OF CHRIST, PRAYING IN

AGONY RIGHT BEFORE HE DIED.

AND IT WAS BOTH PRAYERS.

IT WAS FATHER, LET THIS CUP

PASS BEFORE ME, AND LET NOT

MY WILL, BUT YOUR WILL BE

DONE.

Wendy: ZACH PLAYED THE

GUITAR AND HE WROTE SOME

SONGS TO EXPRESS HIS

FEELINGS.

YOU FOUND A CRUMBLED UP

PIECE OF PAPER WITH A SONG,

AND IT IS THE LYRICS FOR THE

SONG "CLOUDS."

WHAT WENT THROUGH YOUR MIND

WHEN YOU READ THAT?

I ASKED HIM TO WRITE SOME

LETTERS, AND HE TRIED, BUT

HE STRUGGLED WITH IT.

SO WHEN I OPENED UP THESE

LYRICS, I WAS SO PROUD.

Wendy: WHEN ZACH

RECORDED "CLOUDS," YOU

DESCRIBED IT AS WHEN

EVERYBODY CAME TOGETHER FOR

SOMETHING BIGGER THAN

THEMSELVES.

YOU SAY IT WAS SOMETHING

YOU'LL NEVER FORGET.

IT WAS ALL OF THESE

PEOPLE IN PLACES IN LIFE

WHERE THEY COULD MAKE THIS

THING INTO WHAT IT WAS.

ALL OF THEM SAID YES.

AND THAT'S THE PART OF THE

STORY THAT I REALLY LOVE,

TOO, AND THAT I WANTED TO

SHARE IN THE BOOK.

YOU KNOW, PEOPLE IN THE

MUSIC INDUSTRY, SEASONED

PEOPLE, COMING TOGETHER AND

SAYING, WE HEAR THIS.

OUR HEARTS HEAR THIS, AND

THIS IS WHAT WE CAN DO TO

HELP.

BUT NONE OF US EVER, EVER

DREAMED IT WOULD BECOME WHAT

IT HAS BECOME.

Wendy: TELL US ABOUT

THIS, WHAT WE'RE WATCHING

RIGHT THERE, THIS VIDEO.

THAT WAS A VERY SPECIAL

DAY.

AND ZACH -- HE'S NOT, LIKE,

A SEASONED, PROFESSIONAL

SINGER --

RIGHT.

Wendy: BUT THAT'S THE

SONG THAT WENT OUT, VIRAL.

HOW MANY PEOPLE LISTENED TO

IT?

THERE WERE FIVE MUSICIANS

AND ZACH --

Wendy: WHAT WAS IT LIKE

THAT DAY IN THE STUDIO?

IT WAS INCREDIBLE.

THESE WERE PROFESSIONAL

MUSICIANS THAT CAME INTO THE

STUDIO, AND THEY CLAB RATED

CLA COLLABORATED.

USUALLY SOMETHING LIKE THIS

TAKES DAYS, WEEKS, AND IT

TOOK SIX HOURS.

Wendy: HIS SONG HIT

NUMBER ONE-TWO DAY ONE TWO

DAYS AFTER HIS DEATH.

WHAT HAVE YOU HEARD FROM

PEOPLE ALL OVER THE WORLD?

THAT'S THE INCREDIBLE

THING.

IT IS POWERFUL.

PEOPLE ARE REACHING OUT TO

US BECAUSE THEY NEED TO TELL

US THIS SONG HAS CHANGED

THEIR LIVES.

AND THAT'S A BIG STATEMENT

TO MAKE, BUT THAT'S WHAT

WE'RE HEARING.

Wendy: IT HAS BEEN

ALMOST A YEAR SINCE ZACH

PASSED AWAY.

IT WAS LAST JUNE.

DOES IT GET ANY EASIER?

THAT'S A HARD QUESTION.

I THINK YOU KIND OF MOVE

THROUGH GRIEF IN CYCLES.

SOMETIMES IT JUST SLAMS YOU

AND YOU'RE NOT EXPECTING

IT.

I DON'T KNOW THAT IT GETS

EASIER.

IT GETS DIFFERENT, BUT NOT

EASIER.

Wendy: YOU HAVE MAYBE A

GOOD WEEK, AND THEN YOU GO

BACK INTO REALLY

REMEMBERING.

ESPECIALLY THIS TIME OF

YEAR --

THIS TIME OF YEAR IS

REALLY TOUGH.

Wendy: HIS LAST FEW

HOURS WERE TOUGH, BUT HE

DECIDED NOT TO TAKE ANY PAIN

MEDICINE?

HE WAS ADAMANT ABOUT

THAT.

HE WAS ON SOME PAIN

MEDICATIONS, BUT HE WANTED

TO BE ALERT.

Wendy: YOU CAN GET

LAURA'S BOOK, AND IT'S

CALLED "FLY A LITTLE

HIGHER."

AND THE SONG, "CLOUDS," IS

AVAILABLE ON iTUNES, AND

THE PROCEEDS GO TO

CHILDREN'S CANCER.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING

HERE.

THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME.