Class X Unit-I(Attitude Is Altitude). Interactive Exercise

Attitude Is Altitude

Imagine having no arms to stretch in the morning, to help you scratch that itch, to allow
you to wrap your arms around your loved ones. Imagine having no legs to kick pebbles down
the street, to walk or run, to bicycle or skateboard, or get you from point A to point B. Then
imagine both at once, which is what Nick Vujicic has faced his whole life. Have you heard
something like this before?
Nick Vujicic was born with no arms or legs - but he doesn’t let the details stop him. The
brave 26-year-old - who is mainly torso - plays football and golf, swims, and surfs, despite
having no limbs.
Nick has a small foot on his left hip which helps him balance and enables him to kick. He
uses his one foot to type, write with a pen and pick things up between his toes.
‘I call it my chicken drumstick,’ joked Nick, who was born in Melbourne, Australia, but
now lives in Los Angeles. ‘I’d be lost without it.

" I f  you  c an' t  ge t   a  mi r a c l e ,
become one." ? Nick Vujicic
Due to his faith as an Evangelical
Christian, Nick has chosen to remain
a virgin until marriage although he
has had long-term girlfriends in the
past.
 'He's very modest but he gets
marriage proposals from women all
the time,' said Nick's friend and
publicist Steve Appel, from Los
Angeles.
 'He would love to get married
and start a family but he's waiting for
the right girl to come along.'
Water sports aren't Nick's only
thing - he also plays golf with a club
His parents decided not to send him to a special school - a decision he said was very hard
for him, but which may have been the best decision they could have made for him.
When Nick was born his father was so shocked that he left the hospital room to vomit.
His distraught mother couldn't bring herself to hold him until he was four months old.
 His disability came without any medical explanation - a rare occurrence called
Phocomelia - and Nick and his parents spent many years asking why this cruel trick would
happen to them. 'My mother was a nurse and she did everything right during pregnancy but
she still blamed herself,' he said.
'It was so hard for them but right from the start they did their best to make me independent.
 'My dad put me in the water at 18 months and gave the courage to learn how to swim.
'I also got really into football and skateboarding. I totally love the English Premier League.'

Nick's father was a computer programmer and accountant and he taught his little son
how to type with his toe at just 6 years old. His mum invented a special plastic device that
meant he could hold a pen and pencil.
Despite the risk of bullying, his parents insisted Nick attended mainstream school. 'It
was the best decision they could have made for me,' adds Nick, who later achieved a degree
in Financial Planning and Real Estate. 'It was very hard but it gave me independence.'
Nick, who was teased and bullied, had an electric wheelchair for mobility, and a team of
carers to help him.
 'I was deeply depressed when I was eight years old,' he said. 'I went to my mum crying
and told her I wanted to kill myself.
'I felt cold and bitter. I hated God for doing this to me and was terrified of what would
happen when my parents weren't there
to look after me.

'I could brush my own teeth with a
wall mounted brush and wash my own
hair with pump action soap, but there
was so much that was impossible for
me.'
 At age ten Nick tried to drown
himself in the bath but luckily the
attempt was unsuccessful. 'I felt there was no purpose when you lack purpose and strength it
is hard to hold on,' he said. But with the help of his religion, friends and family, Nick managed
to pull through to become an international symbol of triumph over adversity.
'When I was 13 I read a newspaper article about a disabled man who had managed to
achieve great things and help others,' said Nick.
 'I realised why God had
made us like this - to give
hope   to othe r s .   I t  wa s   so
inspi r a t iona l   to me   tha t   I
de c ided  to us e  my  l i f e   to
encourage other people and
give them the courage that the
article had given me.
'I decided to be thankful
for what I do have, not get angry
about what I don't.
'I looked at myself in the
mirror and said: 'You know
what the world is right that I have no arms or legs, but they'll never take away the beauty of
my eyes.' I wanted to concentrate on something good that I had.'
"The challenges in our lives are there to strengthen our convictions. They are not there
to run us over", said Nick. In 1990 Nick won the Australian Young Citizen of the Year award
for his bravery and perseverance.
'When kids run up to me and ask 'what happened?' I just lean over and whisper 'cigarettes',
he laughed.
'And once I was in a car and a girl at traffic lights was giving me the eye. She could only
see my head so I decided to do a 360 in the car seat to freak her out. 'Her face was like
woooooooah what is going on? She sped off really quickly.'
Nick began travelling the world and in 2008 he went to Hawaii and met surfing master
Bethany Hamilton, who had her arm bitten off by a shark when he was 12.
'She was amazing, said Nick. 'She taught me how to surf and I was terrified at first, but
once I got up there it felt absolutely fantastic and I caught some waves pretty well.' Nick
quickly learned how to do the 360 degree spins on his board - a feat that got him on the cover of Surfer magazine within 48 hours. 'No one has ever done that in the history of
surfing,' he said.' But I have a very low centre of gravity so I've got pretty good balance.
tucked under his chin, and is a huge fan of the English Premier League.
 He has visited different countries all over the world. The football fan is now a motivational
speaker and has travelled to over 24 countries speaking to groups of up to 110,000 people.
He moved to Los Angeles two years ago and plans to continue to travel the world - this
year he will visit South America and the Middle East.
"If I fail, I try again, and again, and again. If you fail, are you going to try again? The human
spirit can handle much worse than we realize. It matters how you are going to finish. Are you
going to finish strong?" said Nick
'I tell people to keep on getting up when they fall and to always love themselves,' he said.
'If I can encourage just one person then my job in this life is done.'
- Daily Mail