Robyn’s Song Saved A Life

Thursday, August 07, 2014 WSFM

Richard Mercer received an email detailing how her song helped to save a life…

This song has such significance to me - I had left my ex-husband after a couple of years of domestic violence and my son was little at the time and I had no money - I was in and out of the court system and I met this wonderful man that didn’t care that I had baggage and he had sole custody of his little girl.  
We went out for a number of years and originally it was really hard to trust again but he was so unselfish and attended all my court cases with me which must have been really hard.
Anyway my new love in my life ‘Paul’ was a beautiful man very fit and loved the outdoors and the beach, he also was a girl’s netball coach and he certainly helped me with weight loss and keeping fit.  
Paul surprised me after being together for 5 years by proposing marriage and I was floored - as when you have been through domestic violence you find it hard to think yourself worthy of things... anyway because I didn’t answer straight away he thought I didn’t want to and I explained that was not it... I could see that he was still a little hurt, and I just said please just let me get my head around it and all will be wonderful...

The next couple of days were a little strained and he came out with I want to buy a motor bike as my own wedding present and I said don’t be silly you know I don’t like them, he said so what you won’t be on it and there is one of the mothers at netball that says if I was marrying her she would buy one for me... I laughed and said don’t be stupid, well he said yep and maybe I should marry her.  
I truly believed he was kidding, anyway a few weeks passed and I said I would marry him but he was hell bent on this bike and he did go and buy one and turned up with it to obtain my approval.  
I did not approve, we had this big argument and off he went, a few days went by and he was not returning my phone calls and playing hard to get as he loved too, a few nights later I got a knock at the door very late and it was the local police, Paul had been in a horrific motor bike accident and he was not expected to live.  

The police drove me to Royal North Shore hospital and the whole way I knew my worst fear was here and it was the worst night of my life.  I got there and Paul was pretty mangled and they had not even tried to operate as he was not expected to live.  I sat beside his bed, hundreds of tubes and I just prayed and prayed - the nurse came in and said would I like a cup of tea and would I like the radio on to drown out the sounds of all the machines keeping Paul alive...  
I sat there just looking at him and this song came on the radio... ‘Breathe’, it was so appropriate as he had a tracky in his throat and the machines were doing all the work, I sang this song so loud right at Pauls face, I then got out my phone and downloaded the song and I sang it over and over again.  I know he could hear me - I could swear that he could I just kept singing it and crying willing him to live…  

Paul did survive, however he became a full quadriplegic that night... the police never found the driver that ran him off the road...  I spent my days and nights there as often as I could, single mum first mortgage on my own trying to survive.  Paul spent many, many months in royal rehab at Ryde, I held raffles, auctions, called upon everyone I knew that could possibly help - I wrote to many businesses asking for help.  I was able to help add things to his house to prepare for his coming home.  Paul did come home but decided to take doctors’ advice to move to somewhere where it was warmer for his body to cope better...

Paul and I never married, he said he never wanted to burden me and he could not do that - I was prepared to do so but he would not let me.  Since he has moved up QLD way we have kept in contact via phone and I still feel a lot of love for him.  I have let myself go since this and I somehow, maybe feel guilty - I have not been romantically involved with anyone since - this happened in the year 2000 and we are now in 2014 - it’s too long...  
I work hard in a local hospital and part of my job is looking after the deceased and I see so much sadness in this world and I do it with love and compassion - I would love to go on a cruise just to lighten up my life a little.  I still belt out ‘Breathe’ and smile when I hear it as I know he heard me that night that is why he lived...