OPRAH WINFREY: (VOICEOVER) When Ben Underwood was born,
his mother, Aqua, says he was a happy, healthy baby.
AQUANETTA GORDON: (VOICEOVER) Just a great kid,
he walked at about 10 months.
He was just very coordinated.
Ben was the happiest kid in the world.
OPRAH WINFREY: (VOICEOVER) But when Ben was two years old,
Aqua noticed something alarming.
AQUANETTA GORDON: (VOICEOVER) I noticed he couldn't
see out of the left eye.
It had a glow, a marble look like a cat's eye.
OPRAH WINFREY: (VOICEOVER) A visit
to the doctor brought devastating news.
AQUANETTA GORDON: (VOICEOVER) Ben
was diagnosed with retinoblastoma,
cancer in both eyes.
That was the hardest thing to hear.
Four years later after the surgery,
something astonishing happened to this brave little boy.
When Ben was seven years old, he discovered
he had an astounding gift.
BEN UNDERWOOD: (VOICEOVER) I was at camp.
And I started clicking.
And it became a navigational tool.
OPRAH WINFREY: (VOICEOVER) Now, seven years later,
Ben can see the world through the click of his tongue.
By clicking my tongue on the top of my mouth,
it makes a sound. [CLICKING TONGUE]
And I hear things around me.
I can find people--
[CHATTERING]
--poles, pillars, walls, openings in doorways,
drops on the floor, curbs on the sidewalk-- any object
that it comes in contact with.
OPRAH WINFREY: (VOICEOVER) The technical term
for Ben's special gift is called echolocation.
Trees, trees, trees, trees, trees. [CLICKING TONGUE]
[MUSIC PLAYING]
AQUANETTA GORDON: Today would be his 17th birthday.
[APPLAUSE]
And I am celebrating my baby's life.
His funeral was beautiful.
It was a birthday celebration, party, going home.
It was such a God thing that it was
every age, every nationality.
People were dancing and hugging and loving one
another that never even met.
It was just an incredible experience.
Since I appeared on the "Oprah Winfrey Show,"
Ben went through a process of his cancer coming back.
We had come back from Japan.
He was-- actually traveled all over the world.
And his head was hurting, and he was blowing his nose a lot.
And I thought, you know, he had a sinus infection.
And so we went to the hospital.
And the doctor came back with the result.
They did a CAT scan right away.
And they said it looked like his brain was hemorrhaging.
And it actually-- it was in the sinus right between his eyes.
And I thought, oh, Lord.
Here we go again.
I said, Ben.
You might die.
He said, you just be ready to meet me there.
And I said OK, Lord.
Let's do it.
And that's how he went through the process.
And with the strength that he had,
he gave that strength to me.
They tried one chemo, and the cancer would come back.
And then Ben said, OK, Mom.
I'm done.
I said, OK.
Well, we're going to enjoy every day.
We were enjoying life.
The doctor calls us back.
And he says, well, there's one more chemo that they can try.
So they tried that chemotherapy.
And it-- it wouldn't make him sick.
But eventually he began where he couldn't walk.
The doctor said that, you know, there
was nothing else they can do.
And with this type of cancer, it spreads more and more.
And at this time, it's in his brain.
And eventually he'll just sleep more and more
and don't wake up.
I never wanted him to hear me cry.
I never wanted him to know what I was going through.
When I had my hard times, I'd go in my room.
I'd kick and scream.
I'd cry.
I'd come out ready to go again-- you know,
ready to go for another six months now.
And so I said, OK.
Well, Ben, I'm going to go get the car.
And so he's talking to the doctor.
And I leave out of the room.
And I go out to the car, and I get in the car.
And I scream, and I cry.
And I let it all out because right now this is real.
This is just-- they just told me right now that this is it.
We're driving home and Ben's just singing.
He's just happy like nothing was just said.
Now, right now I've got all these thoughts
going through my mind.
I'm thinking, OK.
Either he didn't understand what this doctor just told him or I
need to whoop him right now.
I said, Ben, you're not afraid to die?
He said, no, Mom.
I said, no, Ben.
I said, baby, you don't need me to hold you?
You don't need me to cry with you?
He said, no.
I said, well, I need to cry.
Can I cry?
He said, go ahead.
And I cried.
I broke down and I cried for the first time in front of him.
And while I was crying-- and I'm crying-- he said,
well, I always knew when you cried anyway.
When my baby took his last breath, I stood over him.
And all I could say was, OK, Lord.
What do you want me to do with this?
Ben had a vision.
And I want to continue Ben's vision.
I have a book, Ben's story.
Ben had the real vision.
He had the vision of the hope of true life and life
more abundantly.
Ben saw beyond sight.
He saw what most people don't see because he
saw straight to the heart.