留學assignment寫作參考-通過經歷艱難進行學習-Learning through the Hard Way
 

阿拉斯加的野外是這個國家留下來的最荒涼的地方，同時是一個了解野生動物自然環境最好的地方，對于一個野生動物生物學專業的來說，了解野生動物的機會看起來是一生中的一次機遇，去年夏天當這個機遇擺在我面前，我毫不猶豫的接受了，這應該是我所從事的職業中最偉大的經歷了，它也給了我一個可以和我所研究的領域的專家們一起工作的機會，此時，我正想這對我來說應該是一個很棒的機會去尋找靈魂和在野外度過高質量的時間在我明年夏天結婚之前，我期待這個夏天能讓我個人有所改變，給了我思考生命的充足時間，我從沒想過這些改變以他們本來的方式出現，一個改變人生的事情可以發生在他們最不希望發生的時間和地點，在德納里峰自然公園的野外的晚上，當我做了一個小小的失誤都會永遠的改變我的生活。我會學習怎樣堅強的愛能獲得真正重要的東西從而對我的生活有個更好的看法。

 

Learning through the Hard Way 

 

The backcountry of Alaska is one of the wildest places left in this country, an excellent place to study wildlife in it’s natural environment. To a wildlife Biology major with an overwhelming draw to the outdoors, the chance to study this wildlife would seem to be the opportunity of a lifetime. When this opportunity presented itself to me this past summer, I didn’t hesitate to take it. This would be great experience for the career path I am taking and it would give me a chance to work with professionals in the field of my studies. At the time I thought it would be a great opportunity for me to do some soul searching and spend quality time in the backcountry before I married next summer. I was expecting this summer to change me as an individual, allowing me plenty of time to reflect on my life. Never did I expect these changes to occur in the way they did. A life changing event can occur when and where they are least expected. The evening in the backcountry of Denali National Park when I made one small misstep would change my life forever. I would learn how strong love can be and gain a better perspective of what is truly important to me in my life. 

 

It was mid June, a beautiful cloudless day in Denali National Park. I was hiking deep in the backcountry, with only the millions of mosquitoes to keep me company. I was on the fifth day of a scheduled six day trip, and I couldn’t have asked for a better week. Denali, the tallest mountain in the northern hemisphere, became visible for the first time of the year and it stayed out for the duration of my trip. Hiking in the trail less backcountry, where the grizzly bears outnumber the people by more than three to one, truly makes a person feel alone. Walking through the alpine tundra, with tiny little flowers acting as a carpet, I encountered twice as many moose as people on this trip. Never had I felt so alone and been so happy about it. Little did I know, that would all change, challenging me to be stronger than I have ever been, both mentally and physically. #p#分頁標題#e#

 

The day of the accident began as a beautiful one. I woke up in my camp just below the summit of 5022’ Mt. Galen as a herd of caribou ran over the ridge beyond my tent. After summating Mt. Galen, I packed up and made my way down to Moose Creek, which I was going to follow for the final twenty six miles of my trip. After following the meandering creek all day through the mountains, I was nearing my planned camp site for the evening. A relatively small, dirt cliff standing only about twenty five feet high was all that stood between me and my place of rest for the evening. Instead of walking a mile upstream and then back down, I decided that I was going to go up and over the cliff. I carefully kicked out my steps as I ascended the cliff. As I reached the top, with my camp site in plain view, I lost my balance. I tumbled backwards, doing a back flip and landing feet first on the riverbed below before crumbling to a heap on the ground. The height of the fall along with the sixty pounds in my pack compressed two of my vertebrae and the disk in between. 

 

Fear. Pain. Panic. I lay on the ground, alone and in the middle of nowhere, unable to feel or move my legs. A dull pain shot up my spine and into my neck. I went into a state of panic. Am I paralyzed? Would I ever be able to walk again? I wouldn’t be able to walk down the aisle at my own wedding. How am I going to even get out of here? Am I going to be able to get out of here? I am not expected to be out for another twenty four hours; so it will be at least two days before anyone comes looking for me. I wonder if I will ever see my fiance again. Will my life be the same? After nearly an hour of these thoughts running through my head, I began to realize that I was panicking. I knew that the worst thing to do in my situation was to panic. The moment I realized that I was the only person who could help myself was the moment that my life changed. I knew what was truly important to me and that was what I would use to give me the strength to go on. 

 

I promised myself that I would get out of the backcountry no matter what it took. I would get back to my fiance. Most importantly, I would stand tall, proudly walking down the aisle on my wedding day to commit the rest of my life to the person who unknowingly helped me through the most difficult time in my life. The next forty eight hours were the most painful days of my life. It took nearly eighteen hours to travel the remaining four miles to the road. I caught a tour bus that took me to the park EMT’s where I was given some pain killers and sent to a hospital in Anchorage. After a few days in Anchorage, I flew back to Illinois where I could be with my family and fiance for the long process of rehabilitation. It wasn’t until I finally reached home that I succumbed to all of the feelings that I had ignored in the last few days. It had never before felt so good to be with the people that I loved most. I knew that I was lucky to be with them, and that I almost didn’t get this chance. Life was suddenly more important to me than ever. #p#分頁標題#e#

 

After two months of intense physical therapy, the doctors released me and came back home to Flagstaff. While I am still not back to 100%, I am extremely fortunate to be as far along as I am. When I look back on what happened this past summer, I realize how lucky I am on two levels. First, I was able to make it out all right and have no lasting effects of the accident. Second, and most importantly, I realized how lucky I am to have my family and friends. All of the things that I used to think were so important seemed so trivial when faced with the possibility of losing everything that is truly important to me. The lyrics of one of my favorite songs, Scarlet Begonias by the Grateful Dead, I think best sums up the situation. “Sometimes you get shown the light in the strangest of places if you look at it right (Grateful Dead).” When we least expect to see the importance of life, we can be shown it. Even a bad experience like mine in Alaska this past summer can have positive results on an individuals life. Nobody ever knows when they will experience a life changing event, but it will never be forgotten when it happens. 

 

Works Cited 

 

Grateful Dead. Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir, Phil Lesh, Keith Godchaux, Mickey Hart, and Bill Kreatzman. Live recording. Alexandra Palace, London. 1974.