Dalliance with death sparks David’s rebirth

DAVID with a copy of his book

A MAN who “died” twice after a road accident in South Africa says his new life started when he came to work in Oldham.

David Maas from Oakbank Avenue, Chadderton, was saved twice in 1981 — the first time by paramedics and the second in hospital in Durban.

And David, who now works with community service teams at the Prince of Wales Business Centre, Oldham, says his out-of-body experiences as he hovered between life and death, have shifted his perceptions of reality and mortality.

He has now written his autobiography, “The Late Great Me: the Politics of Being a Cripple,” which went on-line this week.

The 338-page book describes how life changed for the 17-year-old on August 3, 1981, when his motor bike was hit by a car.

He said: “At the time I had my dream job. I was training to be a train driver and I was a fit, tall young rugby player.”

David’s jugular vein was slashed during the crash, his brain was damaged, and he broke his leg, ribs, arm and shoulder. He now walks short distances with a stick.

He said: “I was in limbo, halfway between life and death. I saw a very bright light but very far away. It was a highway.

“I saw my dead brother, and he was glowing, but he could not hold me.”

David “died” again in hospital and had the same out-of-body experience.

The long road he has travelled since, through broken marriages and successful businesses, before an armed robbery persuaded him to pack up and come to England, are recounted in graphic detail.

David lived in Salford and tried to get work in Manchester, but it was a hard time for him. He recalled: “I went to Manchester Chamber of Commerce, big businesses and job centres, but because I wasn’t getting benefits they weren’t interested in helping a cripple.

“I felt like a second-class cripple in a first world country.”

David started temporary jobs, but things changed when he met his future wife in 2004.

Computers have played an integral part in his new life. His book is written and sold on a computer, he works with computers, and he met his wife Margaret, from Chadderton, in an on-line dating agency.

Then he found out about Oldham Council’s Training into Employment (TiE) scheme. He said: “My mentor is Pam Standring. She treated me as a human with potential.”

David now works 32 hours a week, on accounting, business analysis, business plans, risk assessments and time-keeping.

He said: “I am really happy and settled. I like getting in my car and going to work. I am at a happy point in my life.

“My doctor in South Africa, Prof Earle, told me to stop asking ‘why me?’. I’ve learned to be angry but not bitter. Being angry is fine as long as you target it into working harder.”
And on the final pages of his book he writes: “The most important thing I have learned is the meaning of unconditional love. It is our true nature and the innermost nature of existence itself. I have learned not to fear death.”

Priced £16.99, the book is available from www.lulu.com/content/3640602