Is there anything good to say about getting a fatal case of cancer? Yes.

Layton Reid is a 40-something-year-old husband and dad who lives in Halifax, Nova Scotia. A few years ago he had a growth taken off his back that turned out to be melanoma. It’s now in his brain.

Mr. Reid has a Facebook page that celebrates living life in the moment. He wrote a post on September 11 addressed to “Dear Mel.” An excerpt:

i know we’ve had our differences in the past and i know we’ve not always seen eye to eye, but i’ve learned so many lessons i never would have, had we not been introduced a handful of years ago in the back of a sketchy walk-in clinic in downtown ottawa. back where this whole silly adventure began. back when you taught me all the ultra important rules to remember about this unmistakably messy yet miraculous life of mine.

lessons on perspective, patience, pain and above all, resilience.

i have loved and been loved more in the last few years than i have the first thirty five or so of my life and i appreciate things today that i most certainly would have taken for granted the day before we met. most importantly though i’ve accumulated a ton of cool scars to show finn before i have to eventually squeeze his clammy little hand into mine and remind him to be good to his mummy and hope he remembers just how much i loved him when he’s old enough to process this whole shitty nightmare of a situation i’ve inadvertently put my family through.

You can read the whole thing on his Facebook page.  I happened across it because Layton’s wife was a dietician for an Ottawa weight loss doctor who has an excellent blog called “Weighty Matters.” See his post about Layton Reid here.

And then go spend some time with your family.