At 15 years of age, Mitchell Allen is one of very few teenagers who knows exactly what he wants to be when he grows up.
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The trouble is, no one knows how long he will live for.
Mitchell has cystic fibrosis, a genetic condition with an average lifespan in Australia of 38 years. Each day, he washes down 30 tablets, does physiotherapy to clear his lungs and keeps as fit as possible to prevent further damage to his vital organs.
His parents, Trudy and Darren, hold out hope that a cure will soon be found, and their son will be able to live a full and happy life.
In the meantime, rather than wrapping him in cotton wool, the family believes the best thing for Mitchell is to follow his dreams.
And that dream is to be a train driver.
His specific request to the Make-A-Wish Foundation was to drive the longest working steam locomotive in the southern hemisphere, which happens to be in Canberra.
Trudy, Darren, Mitchell and his older brother Liam, 17, have travelled from their home in Victoria to the nation's capital to make that dream come true.
Canberra Railway Museum volunteer Garry Reynolds said the recently restored 6029 train is "like a global rock star" in the heritage train community.
He said it was no wonder Mitchell, a train enthusiast since he first watched Thomas the Tank Engine, wanted to drive that one in particular.
"That will be a unique experience," Mr Reynolds said.
"It is an enormous, fire-breathing monster, I can never get used to how big it is so it will blow him away."
Mitchell will also take a trip to Bungendore on another train, a former tank engine just like Thomas.
"We just wanted to give him a few extra surprises," Mr Reynolds said.
"When he comes on board with us, the guys are going to show him all the ropes of running the train, checking the brake and the air, taking him through the full thing a train driver has to do," Mr Reynolds said.
He said there would be some times during the journey when Mitchell would sit in the carriages instead of the driver's seat, especially when the train enters a tunnel.
"It can be quite suffocating and we don't want to risk it," Mr Reynolds said.
Despite the risk, Mrs Allen said the family is thrilled to be able to share the experience with Mitchell.
She said it was important for Mitchell to do things now, because no one knew what the future would hold.
"For the time being, we've said to Mitchell 'follow your dreams'. We don't hold him back from anything," she said.
"We just have to live in the moment and enjoy everything that comes about."
Mitchell's Stockman Train will leave from the Canberra station on Sunday.
