Fighting Fate

Friends,

Yesterday met an amazing person. She is an old school classmate of mine, our school topper. She is presently a doctor in Air Force and her husband who died a few days back was also a doctor. The husband was diagnosed with brain tumor in middle of 2002 with medical science giving him 7-8 months to live. He lived for seven and a half years. Listening to her about how they lived through these tough 7.5 years was a truly inspirational story. Both being doctors knew what was coming but tried to live as normally as possible. Despite the best possible medical care, the husband eventually got paralysed in the left part of the body. Still, his zest for life and living a 'normal' life continued. And his wife supported him by helping him in daily chores, making sure his self-respect, desire for privacy and dignity did not get hurt. Doctors and even family members sometimes treat terminally ill patients as if they are just vegetables and have no sentiments. This was an exceptional case where both the people being doctors, and brilliant ones at that, knew exactly what was happening and could see death staring in face, but refused to give up till the last. They tried to live as normally as possible making the husband live with dignity, the way he would have wanted till his last breath.
And the way his wife managed all this for years with the highest sense of duty, love and respect for him was awesome. How she controlled her own emotions and held the family together, fighting the disease, performing her role as a doctor and a mother is truly inspiring. God bless you Surekha.