Born to Live

I find it hard to fathom how it must be for a parent to bring a child into the world and discover that they have a potentially fatal disease or illness. If it was my child I would probably not cope very well, if at all. The poor child would be cloistered and pandered to and would most certainly find it a challenge to convince me that I should let them do even the most mundane of things. And the level of anxiety at which I would function would probably make it very hard for anyone close to me to live a normal life. 

This evening I heard the news that a beloved childhood friend, Neil, has passed away. He had cystic fibrosis. When one loses a childhood friend so many snatches of the past suddenly reveal themselves again. I can hear Neil’s beautiful raspy giggle above the sound of his nebuliser. And I can see the dust motes of a four wheeler against the light of the setting sun. And I can see the big ass fish that he and his brother Ken cultivated in their swimming pool - they were the stuff of nightmares. Just small fragments from the life of someone I love. 

Nothing stopped Neil from being fully alive. He was fun, adventurous and joyful. And his laugh still rings in my ears even though I haven’t seen him in many years. He lived a life that, to an outsider who didn’t know his condition, seemed completely normal and balanced. 

But I can still see his mom, Susan, finding him at dusk while we were playing on the lawn, with a jersey for him discreetly tucked under her arm. I can still remember the medication lined up on the kitchen counter. And I remember the times when he needed to be hospitalised. 

I don’t know how Susan and Keith did it. I don’t know how they had the grace to let their son live a fully triumphant life. I don’t know how many hours, weeks, years were spent worrying and watching and reacting. 

What I do know is this - Neil’s life time is similar to that of our Christ. He was 32. I know that, like Jesus, the people who came to know and love Neil were changed because of the way he lived his life and the way he loved - fearlessly and joyfully. I know that when the first cries of a new born baby rang out in Bethlehem God knew that His son would be destined for a short, yet extraordinary, life.  And I know that when beautiful Neil was born God would have walked the journey with Keith, Susan, Sue and Ken because He knows full well the pain of facing the premature loss of a son. I know that right to the end, just as Jesus called out from the cross to those He loved, Neil was consoling his friends and showing them his greatest gifts of love. 

And I know that, just as Jesus was born to give us eternal life, so too was Neil born to live. 

May God keep the Mackay family and all Neil’s friends in His innermost sanctuary.