I can’t remember the first time I met Billy. Which is a strange statement considering he would become one of my best friends so quickly. I do remember during my tenure in the life education institution that is the University of Limerick Billy always being mentioned. I also remember Billy was always sick, or in hospital or on steroids for the umpteenth time but I never knew why? Cystic fibrosis was what I was told but for all the knowledge I had of this lifelong disease he could of had an ingrown toenail!! And that isn’t to be flippant and dismissive of what is an incredibly debilitating disease I simply didn’t know anything about it.

Billy soon became a large part of my life and one of main cogs in the trusted inner circle of “the lads”. I know we Irish males love the banter and the craic with the lads but I do believe we are a particularly close knit bunch of males. I would happily trust any of them with the deepest darkest secret or most embarrassing tales of misadventure and there have been plenty tales. Billy has been central for all of them. Be it the party we had for him after he had his transplant to the week a group of us did in New York last year to the annual “Big Dance” every Christmas where everyone moves heaven and earth to get together.

Despite my hazy memory of my first meeting with Billy I have a crystal clear memory of the night I got the news he was on his way to Newcastle for the lung transplant. I was studying for my masters in Belfast and was out on the town. We were in one one of Belfast’s student nightclubs when I received a text from my good friend Enda Varley. I was in the smoking section because I remember welling up upon reading the text, looking up and saying thanks. I was over the moon. I couldn’t contain how happy I was. I left immediately and walked home ringing Varley and any of the other lads that would answer. Billy was in the air and on his way to a new life. There was obviously an incredibly difficult and technical procedure ahead for Billy and the extremely talented surgical team but I knew he was on the road to a new life.

That new life hit an early speed bump when Billy contracted swine flu in the new lungs soon after taking his first breath. His lungs filled with fluid and the prognosis was not good. We were told on the Friday that the lungs may not last the weekend. It was a death sentence and incredibly difficult news to hear. To think that my friend who had been through so much and had just received this new lease of life would have it so cruelly taken away from him was devastating to all of us. I remember speaking to Martina over the phone and I made my arrangements to go in and see Billy. The last time I had spoken to Martina on the phone I had been placing my order for the next visit to the west where Martina’s is always the rallying point before heading out. The curry is legendary. It was awful to now be having such a different conversation with her about having to potentially say my goodbyes to my friend. Miraculously over night Billy stabilised and started showing some signs of the medication working. Gradually over the next few days desolation turned to hope, hope turned to cautious optimism and that is all he needs for once Billy even sees a glimmer of light at the end of a tunnel its like he morphs into the train going through the channel tunnel. Nothing would stop him once again.

He’s as stubborn as a mule, if you want Billy to do something you tell him he can’t do it. Billy after your transplant it’ll be months before your able to get out of bed….he was walking to his exercise bike in a matter of weeks. Billy after the swine flu you will not get back to the same level of functionality….again once he was told he couldn’t do it he proved everybody wrong. I’m tempted to tell him he can’t win the lotto and cut myself in on the profits. The change in Billy since his transplant has been amazing. I can’t is not in his vocabulary. Although he is like a travelling pharmacy his quality of life has trebled. Gone are the long lonely stints in hospitals, gone is his shortness of breath, gone is the Billy that would need a rest after a walk to the shop. He still has more hurdles to throw himself over on a daily basis than most but I don’t know anyone who’s better at getting over an obstacle put in front of him. He might get dealt a bad hand from time to time but he’s the best card player I know.