“My accidents have left me permanently in pain and there’s nothing that can be done about that. Some days it reaches terrible levels and I get grumpy and difficult to be around. Other days it’s manageable. Life goes on and I can either moan and groan or get on with it and look for the positives. When I meet others with worse injuries than mine it reminds me that there is always someone worse off and we should all be thankful for what we have”….Sean Smith The Fat Paddler
A copy I have waited for for some months arrived just a few days after Christmas, a belated present! And I have not been able to put it down since, well not until finishing reading it anyway!
The Fat Paddler by Sean Smith gives account of the authors struggle back to fitness and purpose of life after suffering an abnormal amount of trauma, be it witnessing first hand the atrocity of the Bali terrorist attacks that saw a number of his rugby playing colleagues and civilians lose their lives, to the suffering of near fatal injuries from not one but two major motoring accidents. The most recent of which just beggars belief!
Used to fitness through rugby playing. The big Australian front rower was now smashed and battered. With long periods of hospitalisation, served up with bouts of depression and increasing obesity, time appeared to be running out!
The start of family life usually brings things quickly into perspective and the same can be said here. The realisation of wanting to see his children grow up soon had Sean seeking other ways to get fit. This came in the way of kayaking! Being one of the few things that his permanent injuries would allow him to do in some degree of comfort, this form of paddlesport would lead him down a path of fitness, discovery and well being.
A story of One man, one normal mans desire to live, A story of physical as well as emotional experiences suffered, one of personal sacrifice, of strength and fortitude, and of the joy, wonder and realisation that life is for living. The Fat Paddler will have you looking at your own life and asking yourself whether you are doing enough in yours!
Nigel Ayers
You can connect with the Fat Paddler and read more of his exploits and adventures in a variety of social media methods including:-
The Fat Paddler by Sean Smith
Published by: Finch Publishing
ISBN: 978 1921 462 313
For details of availability visit FatPaddler.com
