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Life Lessons From A Book

Here is a book review I had written in 2008 and just revised today!

The Book - Miracle In The Andes by Nando Parrado.

On Oct. 12, 1972, a rugby team left Montevideo, Uruguay, to fly to Santiago, Chile, for a game. Nando Parrado was one of those rugby players. There were 45 people on the plane, The Fairchild. The plane crashed in the Andes. Those that survived the crash did not know they would have to find a way to survive high up in the Andes for 72 grueling days. The weather was grueling and there was no food or water. These men and women had to learn survival techniques that most will never have to experience in their lifetime. These people never thought that would have to either!

Miracle In The Andes, is a book that tells the amazing true story that will move anyone with a heart. I got the privilege to hear Nando speak a few years ago. The room was filled with a few thousand people. Everyone was so focused on each word Nando spoke, that you could have heard a pin drop. To hear Nando tell about his friends, family members and people he had just met, about this unexpected moment of his life, was very emotional for me. This book had been sitting on my book shelf for about two years. I finally decided it was time to read the story. When I finished this book my feelings of grief just overwhelmed me. I felt such loss for all those who lost their lives. Crazy, since I never met any of them. The book was so descriptive, maybe too descriptive, but needed to be, to tell the story. I could not help feeling a sense of loss but awakening in my self. The story of survival is one of the most heart wrenching realities I have ever heard.

So many life lessons can be learned from reading this book. If you never give up, you can do anything you want. If someone else tries to steal your dreams and give up on themselves, remember to never give up on you. You are the one constant in this whole vast world. Go out and be a leader...you are the one in control of your destiny. Love conquers all. Without love what is your purpose? Having someone to share your hopes, dreams and reality with is what truly makes the world a better place for everyone. As I said, I got the privileged to hear Nando speak. It really did make chills go up and down my spine. I know many of us have challenges in our lives and no one can truly understand what each other goes through mentally. If I saw Nando, on the street, I would have no idea the hell he lived. We have to remember to be kind to everyone we meet. I know similar phrases pop up in social media all the time. People really have to take action and make an effort to be better for themselves as well as for others. Sharing a kind word, a listening ear or even just a smile might lift someone up for the day. It is better to add to someone's happiness than to make their day worse. But as noted above, YOU have to be the strongest for yourself! Create A Great Week...I hope one day you will have time to read this book.

Shelley Kimberly

source for some of the material...the book itself and


     Shelley Kimberly
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