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Yossi Ghinsberg
Yossi Ghinsberg, an Israeli dreamer, explorer
and storyteller, delivered a clear message: Never allow yourself to
become a victim. Ghinsberg talked for nearly two hours Nov. 8 in the
Robert Brown Theatre, telling his harrowing story of survival in the
Amazon rain forest in the early 1980s, while at the same time mixing
in messages for people to live by today. “We are all responsible
and accountable,” said Ghinsberg, whose appearance followed the
College Endowment Association’s annual banquet and was sponsored
by the cultural arts series Heartland Arts at Cowley.
Ghinsberg told the story of four men, all from different nations, who set out
to explore the Amazon rain forest in 1986. The group split up, two going one
way and two another. Ghinsberg never saw two of the men ever again, and he thought
he’d never see his partner, Kevin, again after getting separated from him
following a rafting accident. But after three weeks, which included several days
without food, Ghinsberg and Kevin miraculously were reunited. Each believed the
other to be dead. “I knew that if I could get to a clearing, a plane might
see me,” said Ghinsberg, who had heard and spotted a plane overhead in
the dense rain forest.
Several days passed, and Ghinsberg knew his only hope for survival was to stay
close to the Amazon River. However, that’s also where the vegetation was
the heaviest. As it turned out, Ghinsberg reached the clearing and collapsed,
only to find out that his companion and friend, Kevin, had reached the same clearing
yards away. Ghinsberg told how his body had become a complete wreck. A tree branch
had gouged his side. His feet were nothing but shreds of flesh. And after urinating
on himself, he was attacked by thousands of termites, which also shredded his
clothing. Still, he was determined to survive. “I never thought of myself
as a victim in all of this,” he said. “I trusted the man motoring
the raft, as all four of us did. I had nothing to do with that situation, but
I still felt accountable and responsible for my current situation.”
Ghinsberg’s Laws of the Jungle challenge audiences on emotional and intellectual
grounds. The laws:
Never choose the path of a victim;always maintain responsibility;
meet fears and obstacles from a place of strength and wisdom;
ride on the waves of change, as it is futile to resist them;
understand life as something that happens for you, not to you;
and build a solid base of operation:
positive emotions, gratitude and grace.
Ghinsberg believes adversity is a part of life, and that being a victim is a
matter of choice. “It’s not about what happens, it is about the way
you perceive it,” he said. “Where is it? It’s right here. When?
Now,” he said. Ghinsberg divides his time between the rainforest of Australia
and the East Coast of the United States.
