…. you meet a truly remarkable human being. Who impresses you from the word go. And whose memory will stay with you long after they are gone. Who has style. Panache. Strength of character. Just an all-around great guy.

I met one such person last week. And ever since I met him, I cant help but admire him. I really like him. Its hard not to. Here he is, a man in his 70s. More than 6 years down the line after being diagnosed with a lethal form of cancer. That in itself is a miracle. But thats only the beginning. In his fight with cancer, he has won some, and lost some. He has won six years. Along the way, he has lost his voice box, and now communicates through text messages, emails and writing. He has a hole in his neck to breathe through. He has another hole in his abdomen to feed through. He has cancer all over his body.

Now the cancer is slowly getting bigger. He can see it swelling under his skin everyday. Sometimes it bleeds out through the skin. Occasionally, the bleeding doesnt stop. He knows the cancer is now starting to win.

But the thing about him that really amazes me is how accepting he is of that fact, without necessarily giving up. He still lives on his own. He doesnt have a car. He cycles everywhere. Cycles to go see his grandchildren. Cycles down to the pub to go see his mates. He does his own vacuuming, and mows his front lawn every few weeks. Orders all his medications by email. If the tumour starts bleeding with no sign of stopping, he sends an urgent text message to one of the nurses here at the hospital, who goes to see him urgently to make it stop bleeding.

It amazes me how well he manages. Every morning, I go to see him. I talk, he writes. When he laughs, the air gushes out the hole in his neck with a soft ‘swoosh’. He always greets me with a smile and a wave. By the time I get to see him on my round, he has already finished the cryptic crossword in the morning paper. He doesnt even bother doing the classic crossword, its too easy for him.

Him and I both know he is dying. But the grace, the absolute style with which he is doing it, I can only look on with admiration. Its almost as if, he is an expert about it. I guess that is not so surprising, after all, he has been practising for six years.