Love, create & innovate - not necessarily in that order

9. The patients, the Yangs

Brett bit his lower lip.

"Eddy, this is gonna sound so random but this time I want to tell you something."

Eddy smiled.

"Okay...?"

"...I've had heart surgery."

Eddy raised an eyebrow.

"Oh wow. Um... you're not kidding about the randomness. I mean... you're quite young aren't you? You can't be that much older than me."

"I'm 37."

As it turned out, Brett was only a year older than Eddy.

"Okay...?"

"I was born with a heart condition. It's been a balance between surviving till I became old enough to be operated on, plus waiting for the advances in medicine."

"Oh my god"

Eddy remembered his daughter commenting how small and difficult it must be to operate on a small heart by looking at her own fist. He also remembered Caitlyn comparing Brett's comparably smaller fist against his own by putting them together, making them touch.

"It's a hereditary heart condition. My Dad had it too."

"Oh... but you saying he had.. it?"

"Yeah, he had surgery in his 30s.. actually he was my age, 37."

"Okay..."

"There was this famous heart surgeon at the time... Dad was hoping this doctor would operate on his heart and save his life...and then one day this doctor was murdered. He was shot dead. Quite a rare thing to happen in Australia."

"Oh yeah... I know of him... he had a foundation set up by his name, didn't he?"

"Yes. I remember my Dad howling in grief when he heard it on the news. I was only 7 years old at the time. Dad had been writing to this doctor's research team, sending in medical reports and referrals, begging him to operate on his heart. Dad was also hoping this doctor would eventually operate on me as well. And it was shortly after Dad had finally been added to their waiting list when the doctor was murdered."

"Oh no.. oh geez.."

"So when Dad heard the news that the doctor was murdered... he thought that was going to be the end of it. The chief surgeon gone, no more life-saving surgeries available. He was devastated. He said it was worse when he thought of me. He said he wanted to undergo the doctor's knife first to make sure this doctor could cure him before he'd ask the doctor to operate on me. I don't think I can fully appreciate and get what went through his head... maybe as a father, you would, Eddy?"

Eddy felt like he completely understood what President Yang was feeling. Well, at least he could imagine it.  Putting himself into President Yang's shoes, imagining having a serious medical condition as his daughter, Eddy was so shaken by the emotions involved for the young father and what he wished for his son, he was almost in tears. He quickly blinked as he stammered.

"Oh my god.. um.. yeah, I think I understand.. or at least I can imagine... I'd definitely want to go under the knife before I'd let them operate on Caitlyn if I was in his position...So.. how did your father eventually have his surgery??"

"Well, this doctor, he'd been training up his students... he knew he had to invest in the future and pass on his skill sets. That's how Dad was able to have his surgery the following year by a doctor who'd been trained under him. Thanks to him, Dad is like an ox now, with a healthy heart like a metronome."

"Oh wow..  That's amazing..."

"15 years later, the same doctor who operated on Dad operated on me. I was.. 22."

Eddy shook his head in amazement.

"Wow.. and.. are you all well now?"

Brett grinned. He pointed his index finger and ran it down his chest. Eddy wasn't sure why he did that.

"Yeah. I mean, I don't run full marathons, but I can do most things. It's a stark contrast when you compare me to the photo in the 3D pen pamphlet.. I'm actually in the background as an intern.. the really skinny pale guy."

"That's amazing..."

"And Dad hired a whole bunch of biomedical engineers and Yang Industries got really stuck into medical device development shortly after Dad had his surgery, almost 30 years ago.. this was his way of giving back to the medical field."

Eddy sighed.

"...Brett... that is truly a touching story."

Brett smiled.

"Well Eddy, your story moved me as much as mine may have moved you. Which is why... I want to help you get funding for your project. Please."

Eddy looked at Brett, too dumbfounded to speak.