Norman Jones celebrates with his family

Press, 27 December 1986, Page 2

Norman Jones celebrates with his family

PA Invercargill The member of Parliament for Invercargill, Mr Norman Jones, took a break from his course of radiotherapy at Dunedin Hospital to celebrate Christmas with his family at a friend’s home in Dunedin.

Yesterday he watched the progress of his three-year-old horse, Firecracker, at the Gore races.

Mr Jones was in a positive frame of mind when he spoke to the “Southland Times” newspaper from his hospital room on Christmas night.

The latest scan has shown 'that his inoperable brain tumour had halved in size since treatment began in late November.

“I feel like the tumour has gone. I feel like I have it beat,” Mr Jones said.

Last week-end Mr Jones went for a .walk on St Clair Beach.

“I’m feeling great, better than I have for

months,” he said. “I’m pretty tough and the Lord’s got more deserving cases than me. “He’s taken me off His waiting list,” Mr Jones joked. Mr Jones said that if the tumour disappeared completely he would stand for another term in Parliament. If it only went into remission, he would not.

“But hell, that’s not

something I’m thinking about now.

“When a chap’s got something like this it makes you sit up and think about the really serious things in life,” he said.

Although he will lose all the hair on his head, Mr Jones said people could be assured that being an “egg-head” would not necessarily make him an intellectual. The loss of hair would be balanced by the growth of a new, bushier-than-ever moustache, he said.

The facial characteristic which, along with his pipe, is a Jones trademark was temporarily lost recently. Mr Jones was shaving when he lost control of his left side and accidentally lopped a piece of the moustache off. He then shaved off the rest. This caused consternation to his electorate chairman, Mr Jim Ryan, who said at the time that it had messed up election

publicity material which would have portrayed a moustachioed Mr Jones. Reaction to his illness had been overwhelming, said Mr Jones. He has received more than 900 cards, letters and messages from all over New Zealand and even overseas from people wishing him well.

“It’s a bit of a shock to the system all these people being nice to me and me having to be nice to them.”

Having his family round him was the best Christmas present he could have hoped for, Mr Jones said. Five of the six Jones children were together, as well as two grandchildren, a son-in-law, and some old friends. Mr Jones’s son-in-law drove him to the Gore races where he has received special permission to park beside the birdcage to watch proceedings.

Mr Jones’s course of radiotherapy is due to finish in mid-January.