This is a quote by Helen Keller who was an American writer and social activist born in 1880. She was born in perfect health however an illness when she was 19 months old left her blind and deaf.
I had heard of Helen Keller in school and I had always thought; how can a person with such a crippling disability make a statement like that? How could she choose to see life as a daring adventure? Did she not curse the world and ask ‘Why me?’ How could she hold more passion and conviction in one statement than many people have in their entire lives? What made her so special?
This is a brief extract for her auto-biography, ‘The Story of My Life’ written in 1903.
‘We walked down the path to the well-house, attracted by the fragrance of the honeysuckle with which it was covered. Someone was drawing water and my teacher placed my hand under the spout. As the cool stream gushed over one hand she spelled into the other the word water, first slowly, then rapidly. I stood still, my whole attention fixed upon the motions of her fingers. Suddenly I felt a misty consciousness as of something forgotten — a thrill of returning thought; and somehow the mystery of language was revealed to me. I knew then that "w-a-t-e-r" meant the wonderful cool something that was flowing over my hand. That living word awakened my soul, gave it light, hope, joy, set it free! There were barriers still, it is true, but barriers that could in time be swept away.
I left the well-house eager to learn. Everything had a name, and each name gave birth to a new thought. As we returned to the house every object which I touched seemed to quiver with life. That was because I saw everything with the strange, new sight that had come to me’.
Her use of language, her passion and enthusiasm for life is incredible and inspiring. She embraced life and everything that came her way. She was eager, excited- it was an adventure.
Life is a daring adventure or nothing at all. Helen Keller hit the nail on the head. There are very few people who see it like that though. We’re far too concerned with the day-to-day grind that we don’t stop and just think ‘wow’. We have become habituated to all the incredible things around us and we just don’t see them anymore. We are blind.
Imagine if we decided that we would choose to experience our life as an adventure? How would are experiences differ from what we are currently experiencing? What would we say ‘yes’ to? What would we say ‘no’ to? What would you whole-heartedly embrace and what would you decide to no longer tolerate in your life?
How would your life change? How would you change?
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