Every other day, after the biopsy, I felt like I was having a silent meltdown — privately, inside my head.

He then looked at me and smiled, “medicine has come a long way, and people are living with cancer now just like they do with heart disease.” 

You may behave irrationally when you or someone you love has cancer. It can bring out your strengths. It can bring out your weaknesses

‘I’m sorry to have had to tell you this Brendan, it wasn’t something I wanted you to hear over the phone.’

I can’t imagine what was going through Bren’s head. Whatever he was thinking, he remained calm — grace under pressure.

“Dad said do you want to come to Piccolo for a coffee?” Dad was standing waist-deep in the pool beside her, grinning.

As we drove to the doctor’s rooms, I could faintly hear Bren saying, babe, babe, are you alright and woke as the car skidded off the road to an abrupt halt.

And then I heard the race caller yell out loudly over the speaker system, as he did for everyone who crossed the finish line, “Brendan Maloney, you are an Ironman.“ I cried.

I have it on good authority that the groom cried when he heard his old beetle pull up outside the church.

The last of the clouds were heading out to sea as the sun rose, revealing a beautiful, big clear sky. Birds started to sing, and I felt oddly like snow white.