| Climbers survival offers story of Christian hope By Marta W. AldrichUnited Methodist News Service During five day s with his right arm pinned under an 800-pound boulder, Aron Ralston pondered options that included dying in a remote desert canyon in Utah, his family and friends never knowing his fate. The extreme outdoorsman analyzed his dilemma, took stock of resources and likely outcomes, and then made his decision. He chose life. The 27-year-old United Methodist from Aspen, Colo., began sawing off his crushed arm with a pocketknife on the morning of April 29. Freed two days later, his arm stump wrapped in a plastic bag and stuffed into a small canvas backpack, he rappelled one-armed down a 60-foot rock face and hiked six miles until encountering a search helicopter. Recovering at his parents home in the Denver suburb of Centennial, Ralston has been surrounded by family and friends, especially members of his old high school youth group at Hope UMC in Greenwood Village. His life has been filled with the reality of his new challenges of life with a prosthesis. But it also has been filled with Christian fellowship, prayer, study and the blessings of a life renewed. Arons story is a story of Christian hope, says the Rev. Margaret Rush Hankins, co-pastor of Hope Church. Ralston grew up, was confirmed and played piano for youth-led worship services in the United Methodist congregation. Trapped in the serpentine crevasses of Bluejohn Canyon, knowing the odds of a rescue were miniscule, Ralston could have given up or given way to despair, Hankins said. But instead, he really chose life. That decision is the overwhelming faith lesson that has inspired hundreds of people to write Ralston and describe how his story has inspired them to take a new look or consider a new approach to their own personal tragedies, according to Donna Ralston, Arons mother. Aron has said he was at peace with the idea of dying. But on the other hand, he had a very strong will to live because there were so many things he wanted to do he hadnt done yet, she said. As a youth, Aron Ralston was academically, athletically and artistically gifted and became an accomplished pianist. Hes always been incredibly strong, whether in high school in weight training or climbing a 14,000-foot peak. Hes always been quicker, faster and stronger than everybody else, says Jon Heinrich, who graduated with Ralston in 1993 from Cherry Creek High School and remains one of his closest buddies. Friends also describe Ralston as a person of great humor and spiritual depth. Arons always been on a faith journey, said Annie Rigo, a third-year seminary student. Hes always had that spiritual component, whether playing piano in the church sanctuary when no one was around, or on a camping trip and wed start talking about God in our lives. Ralston went on to become a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh. He worked five years for Intel before deciding to sell off most of his material possessions and pursue his passion in life mountaineering. Most recently, he worked at an outdoors shop and as a mountaineering gbwc_superusere and nature photographers apprentice. He loved to attend concerts. And he devoted himself to hiking, climbing, canyoneering, biking, rafting and other extreme sports. The ill-fated trip to Utah was intended as training for a ski descent later this year of Mt. McKinley, the highest mountain in North America. Hes probably the most driven person Ive ever met, Heinrich says. I think that comes from his connection with his spiritual self. The Rev. Steve Miller, the other co-pastor of Hope, says being raised in the church has given Ralston a good foundation. Hes a very clear-thinking man of faith and not bashful about talking about the presences that were with him in the canyon those days. He knew his friends were praying for him and actively searching for him. He felt in touch with his mother. He felt tuned in to the Spirit, Miller said. Miller says gratitude was an overwhelming emotion during Ralstons entrapment. He told me as he was hanging there with his arm caught, he was remembering all the wonderful experiences hes had. He was thankful for his friends, for the different hikes hes taken, the different concerts hes attended, for his life. He began to think that life can be filled with more of these blessings. I think that was where the real drive to live kicked in, Miller said. Ralston talks about using his experience to help others. Whatever path he chooses, Ralston has said it will include returning to the mountains and canyons of the Rockies. In 1998, he set a personal goal of climbing all 59 Colorado fourteeners summits of 14,000 feet or higher solo in the winter months, without avalanche beacons, radio or shovel. To date, he has climbed 45. Ralston will definitely climb the other 14, Heinrich says. He will most certainly be back. | 
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