Trail Therapy: Blind Victory

Most of us couldn't begin to imagine a life without our eyesight.  I know personally I would give up my hearing before sight.  But a choice between the two is only hypothetical and the reality is that if either were to happen to us, it would not be voluntary.

For one man, the lose of his eyesight was a traumatic and painful time.  At the age of 36, Trevor Thomas lost the ability to see.  After treatments and painful surgeries, nature took its course and forced Trevor into a world of darkness.  He began therapy to relearn basic skills, like how to eat, cook, walk, and read. He grew frustrated and yearned for a greater purpose of his new life.

So he started hiking.  And he rarely stops.  In 2008 he thru-hiked the Appalachian Trail.  Then thru-hiked the Pacific Crest Trail.  Snow forced him off the trail during his thru-hike of the Continental Divide Trail: Trevor's attempt at the Triple Crown. He recently finished the Mountain to Sea Trail in North Carolina, a 1000-mile long epic stretching from the Great Smokey Mountains to the Outer Banks.

With the help of some acquaintances and his Labrador, Trevor was able to complete all of these trail miles with flying colors: and interesting stories.  Like reaching the summit of Katahdin with a broken foot and 4 broken ribs.  Or crawling to find water.  All of these experiences since 2005 have only heightened his other senses and given him a sense of accomplishment in his life.  He is unable to recall faces or sights from his past, but when he holds his rock from Baxter Peak, or from that forest in North Carolina, he can tell you the exact moment he picked it up, the smells, sounds, and feelings of those momentous ocassions.

His trail name, Zero/Zero (play on 20/20), is a comical alias regarding his lack of vision. But I believe it means more than that.  Trevor Thomas has found a new light, a new line of 'sight' for his life.  He shares his experiences with his Facebook fans and he's sponsored by many different companies.  But he hikes because it's his passion and he loves sharing that with the world.  Zero days of regrets for what he's done to turn his life into a positive beacon of hope for others who have lost their vision.  Zero days of not loving life to its fullest.  And that, I believe, is a lesson we can all learn.