The man who won’t give up (Story)

[Waxbaro!]

Mitchell was 28 years old when it happened. He was traveling along a highway on his new motorbike when something caught his eyes. And when looked back in the direction in which he was traveling, the laundry truck in front of him suddenly came to a stop.

The bike went down, crushing his elbow and pelvis. The gas cap popped off; fuels was ignited by the heat of the engine and the next thing he remembered he was in a hospital, with three-quarter of his body covered by terrible third degree burn.

When he arrived, doctors were not sure if he would be alive. He was judged to have little chance of recovery and his face had been burned beyond recognition.

He survived only after numerous operations - including 16 skin grafts, and 13 transfusions.

Apart from his physical appearance, all his fingers and thumbs had been burnt off in the accident and he was left with two stumps where his hands used to be.

During this difficult time, he consistently communicates to himself that the accident had happened for a purpose.

His Determination
 Within six months after his accident, he was back on his feet again and co-founded Vermont Casting Inc. The tiny wood-stove company becomes Vermont’s second largest employer and his personal wealth climbed to 3 million dollars. He purchased a Victorian home and bought a personal airplane.

He also made a name for himself in politics and became his town’s Mayor for two terms. He had also run for Congress despite the fact that his face was grotesquely marked. His slogan?: ‘Send me to congress, and I won’t be just another pretty face.’

Regardless of his stump-like hands, he finished all his pilot’s training, from commercial to multi-engine to sailplane.

Mitchell thought he was back on top of the world again. All in all, life looked pretty good. But fate was not yet finished with him yet.

Lightning struck twice
On November 11, 1975 with four passengers on board, he was prepared to fly to San Francisco on a routine flight, one he had made countless times before.

The morning was extremely cold and it was snowing. When he was climbing at 75 feet, he felt the plane was not climbing as quickly as it should have. The reason was undetected thin sheet of ice that covered the wings of his plane. Because in front of him were huge rocks, he quickly decided to get back on the runaway. When he pulled the power, he remembered the plane falling like a rock.

Everyone managed to get out but him. He thought his feet were stuck under the pedals but he was wrong. He couldn’t even move those legs.

After numerous tests, his doctor came with the dreaded news. His 12 thoracic vertebrae were completely crushed and his spinal cord is beyond repair. He would never be able to use his legs again. He needed a wheelchair.

Remembering this moment he said, ‘ Before my accidents, there were ten thousands things I could do. I could spend the rest of my life dwelling on the one thousand that I had lost, but I instead chose to focus on the nine thousands I still had left’.

Current Story
Despite having no hands and not being able to walk, he continues to live a full life. Mitchell is still a director of the board to a number of companies, and is a successful businessman. He is also a co-founding chairman of a $ 65 million company.
Waxbaro!