Into the wild
On Tuesday 28th of April 1992, a guy who called himself "Alex" was hitch-hiking in Alaska near Fairbanks. He was on his way to Stampede trail, a place where people rarely go. On the way he was talking about his plan to live in the wilderness on his own for few months. Earlier he had already donated his belongings away, now he was just carrying a light backpack and a rifle. When he got out of the car he wanted to give away his watch, comb and rest of the money (85 cents). Driver first refused to take them but then Alex said "If you don't take my watch, I'll just throw it away. I don't want to know what time it is. I don't want to know what day it is or where am I. Those things don't matter at all."
Five months later bunch of hunters found his dead body. One of the books that he was carrying was Leo Tolstoy's Family Happiness. In that book one sentence was marked:
I wanted movement and not a calm course of existence. I wanted excitement and danger and the chance to sacrifice myself for my love. I felt in myself a superabundance of energy which found no outlet in our quiet life.
When reading this real story I must say that I see lots of similarities between "Alex" (whose real name was Chris McCandless) and myself. It is that movement that puts the glitter into my eyes.
posted by Yaggie at 1:12 PM
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