The Impossible First: From Fire to Ice – Crossing Antarctica Alone by Colin O’Brady – Review and Thoughts
A memoir of Colin O’Brady’s push to complete a world record tried by few and accomplished by none – soloing across Antarctica with absolutely zero assistance from any other human being.
“Antarctica is a blank space in a world that is mostly filled up.”
Colin O’Brady, The Impossible First
“The future beckons, full of unknowns.”
Colin O’Brady, The Impossible First
Along with some new knowledge that I gained about Antarctica and solo trekking, O’Brady came out with some truly poetic writing. Which I believe stemmed from the blank canvas that Antarctica provided for him and the openness with which he accepted that blank canvas.
“The stark emptiness of Antarctica that had drawn me and captivated me, the silence from deleting my music, and the stillness that can come from meditation had all combined to create a moment when it felt like everything unnecessary in the universe was gone.”
Colin O’Brady, The Impossible First
In addition to greatly motivating me, I have some new things I’d like to try. Such as a Vipassana silent meditation – I’ve been saying to myself I need to get back into meditating, and this meditation retreat sounds amazing (though I’m not sure I’d be able to start it any time soon).
I’m a big proponent of adventuring, pushing your body, and doing what no one else has done before. O’Brady’s journey was amazing to read about and quite the experience that you couldn’t hear from anyone else – because he set a world record by being the first person to ever cross Antarctica unassisted, and at the young age of 33. This was just the inspiring memoir (/self-help, though I’m not sure how many other people would consider this book self-help) that I needed. I’ve been thinking a lot about David Goggins’ words in Can’t Hurt Me recently, and Cameron Hanes’ Endure. I’ve even been thinking of rereading Can’t Hurt Me, possibly make it an annual reread for myself, as I find more and more inspiring reads such as O’Brady’s memoir.
Read on and hold those inspiring books close.
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