False hope begins with an article torn out of a magazine, folded up into a neat square and given to me by my friend's mother. A photo of a cute 7-year-old girl with an embroidered pink flower clip in her hair lying on her bed alongside an expressionless Hello Kitty doll tucked behind pink pillows. The girl displays three white pills in one hand and a blue insulin pump in the other. And, of course, a smile. A warm, understated smile.

And my focus turns to words. Words in bold; words that are capitalized; words that are enlarged.

"From Pump to Pills"

"LIFE-CHANGING NEWS"

"First grader with DIABETES can now live her life free of daily insulin injections"

Being cautious about getting too excited, I scan the article for conjunctions such as however, but or although floating across the page like dark rain clouds. (READ MORE)