Breaking News - Today's visit to Ngae

I have just stepped back into my office having been to visit Ngae in hospital. He's looking his usual self other than a whacking big plaster on the side of his head. He's as smiley as ever, very pragmatic about his condition and of course as optimistic as ever.

He was a little groggy which is to be expected but amazingly lucid all things considered. I took him printouts of all the emails and comments that you'd all left for him which he was extremely appreciative of and started reading them all as soon as I arrived.

The results of the biopsy have not come out yet so we're still waiting on that with fingers crossed, although the doctors think that the tumour may have been a side effect of surgery that he had some years ago. If that's the case then I assume it will likely be benign - we have to wait and see though.

Ngae does not yet know when he'll be released but requested that I ask anyone who was planning to visit to wait until he is back home. I also met his wife and son while I was there and they suggested we might even have a bit of a get together once he's stronger and on the road to recovery - rather than lots of people visiting while he is still in hospital.

Ngae's biggest concern was that he probably wouldn't be able to train for the next three months - typical!!! Mind you I seem to remember the same concerns when I was last in hospital - I guess we all suffer from the same obsessive compulsive disorder. Needless to say my advice to him was to rest and enjoy the time off - his reply was "That's what I do, enjoy life as much as I can, ALWAYS", with a big smile on his face.

I left Ngae with my collection of 2008's "220 Triathlon" magazine so no doubt he'll be raring to go and better "educated" about the world of triathlon than most of us by the time he's back on his feet.

I left the hospital with a broad grin and a tremendous feeling of well-being but then that shouldn't surprise anyone as Ngae instills these feelings in just about everyone he meets. He is an inspiration to us all - if you're reading this and you haven't yet met him - make it a point when he's back amongst us as the world will look a little brighter and the air will taste a little fresher.

Get well soon brother.

I'll keep updating this blog whenever I get news and as before feel free to add messages under cooments on this post and I will be sure to pass them on to Ngae.