Attitude is altitude – Comprehension test

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NICK, A TORSO – THE BITTER TRUTH – ATTITUDE IS ALTITUDE COMPREHENSION

Nick was born as a torso. It was because of the medical condition called ‘phocomelia’. Phocomelia is a rare congenital deformity which results in the birth of a baby without limbs or underdeveloped limbs. Nick’s mother was a nurse and she took proper care during her pregnancy but she blamed herself as Nick was born without limbs.

CHALLENGING THE DETAILS (DISABILITY)

Though Nick is mainly a torso, he has a small foot on his left hip which helps him balance his body, swim, play golf and football and type with his toe. He jokingly calls his foot ‘Chicken drumstick’ because it looks like it. The parents played a crucial role in making Nick independent. They sent him to a mainstream school instead of a special school for the disabled people. They knew that Nick would be bullied but they wanted to make him independent.

BECOMING INDEPENDENT

His mother invented a special pen/pencil holder for Nick. His father taught him swimming when he (Nick) was 18 months old. He also taught him how to type. With the parents support, Nick did his degree in Financial Planning and Real Estate.

THAT DISAPPOINTMENT LEADING TO A SUICIDE ATTEMPT…

But earlier, it was not easy for Nick to hold on. As he had to depend on others for almost everything, he wondered what would happen to him when his parents were not there. That thought shook him. He felt depressed and attempted suicide by drowning himself in the bath tub. Fortunately for Nick, the attempt was unsuccessful and he survived.

FINDING THE PURPOSE OF HIS LIFE…

Nick read a newspaper article about a man who achieved great things despite his disability. This story inspired him and he realized that God had him a torso only to give hope to others. Earlier, he had hated God for creating him as a torso. From then, he decided to focus on what he had but not what he did not have.

ACHIEVING THE EXTRAORDINARY STUFF…

For his bravery and perseverance, Nick was awarded ‘The Australian Young Citizen of The Year Award’ in 1990. He believes that challenges in our lives are there only to make us stronger but not to take away our strength.

THE FUN PART…

The funniest thing that Nick recalls was a girl looking at him curiously at traffic lights. Nick wanted to frighten her. So he made a 360 degree turn in the car seat. Seeing this, the girl sped off from there.

GETTING FEATURED ON THE COVER OF SURFER MAGAZINE…

Nick met Bethany Hamilton in Hawaii in 2008. In spite of the fact that she lost her left arm (bitten off by a shark) when she was 12, she became very good at surfing. Nick chose her because he might have thought that a disabled person could understand another disabled person. Nick was featured on the cover page of Surfer Magazine because he did 360 degree spins on his surfing board.

MARRIAGE-MADE IN HEAVEN…

Kanae Miyahara attended a meeting in Texas where Nick was a guest speaker. She found him very inspiring and they became friends. The friendship turned into love. They were engaged in August 2011, got married on 12 February 2012 and had a healthy baby boy named Kiyoshi on 13 February 2013. Nick and Kanae wrote a book titled ‘Love without limits’ and it was published in the year 2014.

Nick has travelled to many countries all over the world. He gives motivational speeches. He asks people to try again and again until they succeed.