It is not always easy for a teacher to relate to his or her students. To communicate with students, it is important for a teacher to relate the subject that he or she is trying to teach is something that the students know, or at least to something that the students care about. In this article, the author, a genetics teacher, relates how he used cancer and butterflies in his discussions. He also narrates that his personal experiences with cancer has made him decide to become a research scientist.