If I told you that there was a guy with no legs climbing a mountain, you’d probably say, “That’s impossible!”.
But right now, as I write this, my friend Spencer West, a man with no legs, has reached the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro. Impossible?
What inspires me most about Spencer isn’t just that he’s got a great attitude and has helped thousands of people all over the world realize that they have the potential to change the world. As great as that is, what inspires me most about Spencer is that he has taken away every excuse I could possible think of.
I can’t ever say, “I’m too busy” or “it’s too hard” or “I’m only 13″.
Spencer West has Redifined Possible not just for himself, but for our entire generation.
Last week I went to Comic-Con for my friends’s birthday. It was a pretty awesome day, but something occurred to me when I saw the Delorean from Back to the Future.
Just imagine jumping into the Delorean and travelling back in time 100 years to visit your great-great-grandmother. What would she say if you told her that where you come from, she wouldn’t need a fire to cook dinner. In fact, she could put a plate of raw meat into a box, press a button and in 10 minutes the meat would be cooked and she could have dinner.
What would she say?
“That’s impossible!”
Let’s jump back in the Delorean and this time, let’s take it to 1950 to when my grandfather was my age. What if I told him that where I come from there’s this thing called an iPhone.
I would tell him that I can hold an iPhone in my hand and there are no wires attached to it. Instantly, I can talk to anyone in the world – and see them on my iPhone when I do. I can type a message on it to somebody in Australia and they will receive it instantly. I can also send a message that’s 140 characters and almost everyone in the world is able to read what I typed.
What would my grandfather say to that?
“That’s impossible!”
To them, microwaves and iPhones were impossible because they couldn’t even imagine them. If you think about it, how many impossible things do we take for granted every day? iPhones, Twitter, electricity, clean water, cars, skyscrapers… we are living in what used to be impossible. Like Spencer West, it is time for you and I to #redefinepossible . It is time to stop limiting ourselves and start imagining again.
I’ve been told (and others just smile and pat me on the head) that my goal of building 2 homes for foster families and 10 playgrounds on northern reserves is impossible.
I’ve been told that collecting 1.5 billion Canadian pennies is a great idea, but it’s impossible.
Do you know what I say to that? I’ll tell you.
Just like Spencer West, I’m about to #redefinpossible
