What is on your bucket list

After the wonderful movie The Bucket List with Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman, most of us actually wrote down our own bucket list. Here is mine. What's on yours?

 

 

1.      To see my daughters live long, healthy, happy and prosperous lives.

2.      To see my brother Steve step out of his wheelchair and walk.

3.      To see my future grandchildren and be a positive influence in their lives.

4.      To live my life with integrity which is the greatest honor I can give my parents.

5.      To earn the love of and share the rest of my life with a good woman.

6.      To have one of my books become a best seller so I can buy a villa at the Amalfi Coast.

7.      To see the University of Washington volleyball program win another national title.

8.      To see the 4^th of July fireworks at Lake Tahoe from an airplane.

9.      To spend one year visiting Italy and Sicily with my family.

10.  To see the Buffalo Bills win a Super Bowl.

Inspiration for "Five Years to Live"

Inspiration for Five Years to Live

 

This book is very personal to me and my family. My youngest brother Steve was paralyzed in car accident when he was 24 years old. This is an experience I hope and pray no other family endures. Shortly after the accident, my mother gave Steve a cassette recorder and told him to record his thoughts and emotions. Steve’s goal was to write a book from the patient’s perspective. He did record several hours of thoughts, but could never bring himself to write the book. He said reliving those terrible days would be too painful.

After I wrote my third book, Inside the Spaghetti Bowl, Steve said “Let’s give this a try. If it can help one person deal with this tragedy it will be worthwhile.” My parents, brothers and sisters all had our memories and experiences to draw upon, but to make this book as realistic as possible, Steve would have to revisit some very dark times.  He listened to his tapes and the horror he thought he had left behind engulfed him. He went back to the moment his car flipped on the New Jersey turnpike. His emotions poured out as he recalled those critical moments where he teetered on the breaking point.  Very few people have the courage to live through this experience and then go back and relive it in order to help others.

Steve said had it not been for the love and support of his family, he would not have survived. As difficult as it is for the injured person, the family is also changed forever. A mother whose son suffered a serious spinal cord injury told me: “This story needs to be told. This tragedy can happen to everyone without warning. It needs to expresses what a spinal cord injury does to the life of not only the person involved, but to their entire family as well. For those strong enough to face this overwhelming obstacle, it is a journey of love, endurance, and absolute triumph of the spirit. It will bring so much hope to so many people that find themselves in a nightmare from which they cannot awake. You will speak for all of us.”

After my going through this ordeal with my brother and my family and hearing the heart wrenching story from this mother, I had to write Five Years to Live.

Press Release for "Five Years to Live"

Young man aims to make lasting impact on others, despite facing his final years

Based on a true story, Frank Zaccari’s “Five Years to Live” is a heartwarming read about making the most out of a difficult situation

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – In “Five Years to Live” (ISBN 1478196904), Frank Zaccari presents the troubling question of what you would do if you knew you only had a short period of time left in your life. Based on a real-life story, this novel follows a young couple as they begin to plan their life together before a devastating accident threatens to take it all away.

Recently engaged, Michael and Donna are a successful couple who are in love and having the time of their lives getting ready for their future together. But when Michael is in a tragic car accident, their plans have to be put on hold. Michael becomes a quadriplegic, and due to constant infections and multiple serious surgeries, doctors give him the prognosis that he has, at best, five years to live.

Despite the heartbreaking news, Michael battles through his injuries and puts his last five years to good use. Not letting his circumstances dictate his lifestyle or outlook on life, the young man does everything he can to make a positive, lasting impact on everyone he meets.

“This is a love story wrapped around the devastation and overwhelming therapies associated with severe spinal cord injury,” says Zaccari says. “The scary thing is that it can happen to anyone. It is the phone call everyone prays they will never receive.”

 

Zaccari believes “Five Years to Live” will resonate with readers who enjoy a powerful and moving true story. He also hopes that it will give readers a better view of what paralyzed individuals have to endure daily as they struggle to live independently.

“Five Years to Live” is available for sale online at Amazon.com and other channels.

 

About the Author:

Frank Zaccari earned his bachelor’s in finance from California State University at Sacramento after several years as a military medic in the U.S. Air Force. After earning his degree, he spent 20 years in the technology industry in various positions from account representative to CEO. He also has experience in turn-around management of companies under $100 million, but he left the business in order to be the primary caregiver of his children. He currently owns an insurance agency, and he continues to publish books. Zaccari’s previous works include “When the Wife Cheats,” “From the Ashes: The Rise of the University of Washington Volleyball Program” and “Inside the Spaghetti Bowl.”

MEDIA CONTACT

Frank Zaccari

Email:              frankzaccari@gmail.com

Phone:             (916) 718-5517

Website:           www.frankzaccari.com

 

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