By Robbie Collin
WEARING his best dinosaur pyjamas and surrounded his favourite cuddly toys, little angel Daniel Selden is tucked peacefully in bed waiting for death.
Grandparents and family have wept their farewells. Mum and Dad have tenderly kissed his cheek for the last time.
Doctors have unplugged the drips and wires and turned off his life-support system.
All parents Ian and Liz can do is wait at the hospital bedside for their beautiful son's final breath.
But Daniel, three, is the boy who refused to die.
After six hours his left HAND twitched. An agonising week later he opened one EYE.
Nearly four months on Daniel who suffered three devastating strokes after a rare reaction to tonsillitis is back home laughing, playing and learning to walk and talk again.
Dad Ian, 42, of Bracknell, Berks, said: "It's a miracle. The doctors are baffled how he came through, but Liz and I are just delighted.
"I took this snap as a lasting reminder of our beautiful little boy. He was a picture of innocence, so peaceful and serene. It was a look we wanted to keep in our hearts for ever.
"Now I'll keep it and show him one day how he defied modern medicine."
The nightmare began in December when Daniel, an active healthy child, got tonsillitis and was prescribed antibiotics.
But one morning he wouldn't wake up he had suffered a stroke. He was taken to Frimley Park Hospital, Surrey, and three days later transferred to King's College, London.
Daniel had two more strokes and a blood clot on the brain. Doctors told his parents he'd suffered catastrophic brain damage and could die any time.
Mum Liz, 33, who lost a premature baby, Aaron, four years ago when his life support was switched off, said: "I was devastated.
"I still hadn't come to terms with losing Aaron and didn't know whether I could survive making a similar decision about Daniel. But in the end I decided turning off the machine was in his best interests.
"We asked his grandparents and relatives to come and say their goodbyes. It was highly emotional."
A vicar arrived to christen Daniel and say a prayer. And as Somewhere Over The Rainbow played over the hospital's radio, Liz and Ian cradled their son and waited for him to die.
But Liz recalled: "Six hours later he moved his hand. I became hysterical. He appeared to be breathing normally and I couldn't believe what was happening.
"The doctors said it might be just a twitch but I was going mad. Daniel's always been a little fighter."
It was just the start of a miracle recovery. Liz said: "When Daniel later opened his left eye it was the first real sign he was coming back to us. I burst into tears. I couldn't stop crying."
Although he regained conciousness, medics said he'd never walk or talk again and would be blind in one eye.
But five weeks ago he was allowed home in time for his third birthday. His sight is coming back, he has started speaking and has just taken his first steps.
Joyous Liz said: "He's now saying Mummy' and Oh yeah'. He's even told his brother Alex to 'shut up!'.
"He's in a wheelchair but has managed to walk three steps by himself.
"Now I've told him he's got six months to walk the length of the lounge to show people who wanted us to give up on him how wrong they were." Doctors remain baffled by Daniel's strokes. One theory is they were caused by toxins released from his tonsillitis. News of the World doc Hilary Jones said: "Sometimes the only way to really know what will happen after brain damage is to turn the machines off."
http://www.newsoftheworld.co.uk/story_pages/news/news5.shtml
