A little levity in a sad week

Its coming up to two years now when I died of Cerebral Malaria, once in Ghana, then back in the UK, Northwick Park hospital, when I was picked up by the ambulance they thought it was Ebola (it was rife all through Africa at the time)

The Haz Mat team turned up in yellow suits, my wife was sent to one hospital, I was sent to another (I never knew any of this, its just what my wife told me)

The whole street turned out to watch

During the night, at sometime I collapsed in the toilet, she heard me, couldn’t move me, she couldn’t revive me, I had stopped breathing, she called the ambulance, they were there in minutes

I was revived, sort of, enough to get me into the ambulance

The next time my wife met up and saw me was in Northwick Park hospital, in IC, all piped up with tubes and wires

I was in there for 2 weeks, when I woke up I didn’t know who I was, who my kids were or who my wife was (you don’t know how scarey that is not to know who you are, where you are or who these strangers are or how you got here)

Its been 2 years (nearly) my life has changed, I don’t worry about anything any more, I know things will happen I cant control, I look out of the window, if its raining, if its sunny, too me its another day, I have made it through another night, so anything outside is a bonus

I have been asked what it was like, I don’t know, everything was dark for a very long time, I never saw any bright lights or heard any voices, I never saw any bearded figures, I never saw angels, I didn’t have any out of body experiences, I never heard harps or trumpets, I don’t even remember waking up, I just woke up

I ask others, what do you say to someone who saved your life (the doctors and nurses) no one can give me an answer, one tiny nurse did though when I asked her, she said “A thank you is nice, but chocolate is better”

That has always stuck in my mind

I still have to go for check ups, scans, blood tests, lung tests, MRI, I forget things, songs bring memories back for me

I think the only people I have to thank are the doctors, nurses and their skills, and my wife, no mystical figures

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I dropped of a box of sweets/chocolate whenever I go there for my check ups

Yes it was touch or go with me, but the amazing thing was, when I had sort of recovered I was asked if I was going to complete my trip, of curse I did, my Africa trip took nearly a year to complete instead of the 8 month’s it should have

But this year, it has been terrible seeing all these people, stars/singers/writers who were part of my life passing on,

I don’t think they minded passing on, I think they were more worried about the people they were leaving behind (I know I would be worried how my wife would cope, being on her own, no one to turn to)

You aint so bad to travel with yourself, we gotta do it again sometime 🙂

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