Value from adversity: Warren Macdonald’s story
On the subject of grueling transitions, and what we lose and what we gain from them, and recognizing the value that often comes with adversity, one of the people on Oprah’s show about courageous individuals (May 19, 2006) was an Australian who lost both legs above the knee (well above the knee) from a freak accident while on a hiking expedition. Here’s the synopsis of his story from the show:
In April 1997, experienced outdoorsman Warren Macdonald was exploring Hinchinbrook Island, an uninhabited paradise located off the coast of Australia, when he met Geert van Keulen, another solo hiker. Together they decided to climb the island’s rugged, challenging mountain, Mount Bowen.
After five hours of hiking and with daylight dwindling, the two decided to set up their camp. Later that evening, Warren left the campsite in search for a place to use the bathroom. Suddenly, a granite boulder weighing 2,000 pounds broke loose and fell, pinning Warren’s legs.
Hearing his hiking mate’s screams, Geert rushed to help. He tried for four hours to push and pry the boulder free, but it would not budge. It then started pouring down rain, filling the dry riverbed up to Warren’s hips. He knew before long the water could go over his head. “If I thought I was in trouble before, now I’m really in trouble,” says Warren.
Video and story:
Warren Macdonald story
Warren climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro a year after losing both his legs. On the Oprah show and in his book, he makes this Shifty statement about the traumatic adventure that got him to where he is now:
Warren says losing both of his legs has not been an entirely bad experience. In fact, he says he does not even necessarily wish that it had never happened. “I’ve learned … how infinitely more powerful each of us is, and how responsible we are for creating our reality,” he says. “It wasn’t in my reality—the same as it’s not in most people’s—for a guy with no legs to climb to the top of Kilimanjaro. So I set out to create that reality.”