How I Learned to Live and Love Again After Being Blinded by a Bear
Mauled by a huge brown bear as he was returning from a day of fishing, Dan nearly died. This is his story, and it is hugely compelling, both for the adventure and drama but equally for Dan's courage, spirit and attitude.
Brian (Dan's brother) flies to Anchorage immediately on hearing the news and arrives at the hospital where a nurse tells him: "He's heavily sedated, so he won't be able to respond. You're going to see a lot of equipment and a lot of tubes. He's had a tracheotomy so he's on a ventilator. He has a feeding tube and a catheter. Here are puncture wounds on his back, shoulders, arms, wrists and left thigh. His eyes were severely damaged so his eyelids have been sewn shut."
Dan describes his mauling:
"Those eyes, I remember them as yellow and burning like comets. Those eyes would be the last thing I would ever see....Somewhere between the bashing of my head and regaining consciousness, the bear had managed to flip me over. It stood over me now, straddling my body, claws sunk deep into my shoulders, pinning me to the ground with bone-crushing weight. My arms useless, I could do nothing to stop it as it cocked its head sideways and clamped its jaws across the middle of my face. Crunch. Like a mouth full of eggshells."
And so the rest of his life begins. Dan is a remarkable person with a remarkable story. I could write a lot more of the details, but if you are interested at all, it will be so much better reading Dan's words.
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