In late August, Ben Debono set out on an Australian adventure with his dog, Turbo. Ben sold his house and quit his job to buy a Land Cruiser that would be his home.
He did all of this is in memory of his wife, Leah, who had died earlier this year after a battle with cancer. Ben has been cataloging his trip on Facebook, and his following has grown and grown through the support of friends, family, and strangers who are thanking him for being so candid.
Many have even shared their own stories of loss with Ben, as well as leaving comments of love.
Ben and Leah both loved to travel, and although his wife couldn't be with him in person on a trip meant for two, he took a framed photo of Leah with him wherever he went.
"Really missing Leah because I know Leah would love this trip as much as Turbo & I. Feeling better each day! Starting to see that life does go on," he wrote in one post.
Keep scrolling to see the ways Ben is keeping Leah alive through his memory and this Australian trip.
Thumbnail Photo: Facebook / Ben Debono
Ben Debono had been married to Leah, the love of his life, for only three short months when she lost her battle with melanoma earlier in 2017.
To pay tribute to her, Ben quit his job and sold his house. He then packed up his belongings and set out with the couple's dog, Turbo, across Australia on the trip the couple never got to take.
Ben bought a 1979 Land Cruiser to drive around Australia with his dog after selling his house.
"Leaving it all behind after losing our world to travel/discover Australia full-time in a slide on camper," he wrote on Facebook.
Though all of his photos receive hundreds of likes, there was one photo that caught the attention of thousands of people.
On September 14, 2017, Ben posted a picture on Facebook of himself and Turbo sitting at the Northernmost Point of Australia. In his hand is a framed photo of his late wife Leah.
As of this writing, the photo has received over 36,000 reactions.
Ben captioned the photo:
Not exactly the way we wanted to but made it your never going to stop living though [sic] me & turbo you will always be my wife & my one true love
Along the way, he has continued onto many other spots of Australia in memory of his wife. He even makes sure to try and leave a bit of her memory everywhere they have gone.
Ben uploaded this gorgeous photo of an Australian beach where he drew a peace sign, a heart, and a lightning bolt with Leah's name under it.
Ben tags every post "peace, love, lightning, Leah" in her honor.
Ben made a stop in Cairns, Queensland, where family and friends met up with him to honor Leah.
In the caption he wrote:
Thanks to my family & friends for making the effort & meeting me in cairns ! Home is where the heart is & haven’t felt like I have belonged in a while but with having my loved ones around & the massive amount of support from around Australia has warmed my heart I am sorry I haven’t replied to all the very special messages from people that have also lost loved ones & messages of support I promise I will get back to you all asap. Very proud of my achievements & I hope the message of sun safety is being spread !
Friends and family aren’t the only people supporting Ben. Thousands of strangers from around the world have left messages of love for the man.
Rachel thanked Ben for sharing his journey with the world. "You have so much support to keep going and live a full life," she wrote.
Others used the comments section to empathize with Ben and share their own stories of loss.
MickLyn wrote about losing her husband and told Ben that his posts are bringing her "great comfort and joy."
If you're touched by what Ben is doing, please SHARE this story on Facebook with family and friends.
