Dr Ian Davis contacted me out of the blue in February 2013, it was a Sunday, and I had just spent a good day in the sun. In the email Ian briefly explained the brutality of Motor Neurone Disease and outlined how he wanted me to document he and Scott Sullivan’s intended charity ride from Brisbane to Sydney. He also attached a very candid article that was published in Melbourne’s ‘The Age’. This article was about the impact of his diagnosis, the fears that struck him, the surrender and eventually the acceptance of his fate. He also spoke about his legacy, what he thought he was going to leave behind had to shift because he now wouldn’t finish his training as a haematologist and he would never have a family.
As I began to explore the disease I found that its origins are almost unknown, and with a 90% non-hereditary rate, it means that it can happen to anyone and in this case, it happened to a 33 year old doctor. This struck me hard. I couldn’t get the idea of being given a time limit out of my head, but more importantly I couldn’t answer the big questions that are asked when facing your mortality; have I done enough with my life? Have I loved enough? Am I on the right path? What is important in life? What would I do if I were given two years to live? What mark would I leave on this world? What would be my Legacy?