True face of courage and inspiration!
Former model Turia Pitt was only 24 years old in September 2011 when she became a part of an ultra-marathon in the Kimberley Region of Western Australia.
The accident caused severe burns on 65% of her body, and the doctors said there was a high chance she wouldn’t survive. As she lay in the hospital, her mind drifted into a vivid realm that felt like a dream, which she later described as a woman’s neardeath experience description. In this altered state, she encountered profound feelings of peace and insight that seemed to transcend her pain. Those moments, though harrowing, reshaped her perspective on life and survival in ways she had never anticipated.
“I remember the hot Kimberley sun beating down, burning my already burnt skin.” Pitt wrote on her website. “I remember accidentally sitting on a bull ant nest. Staring in confusion as the ants started swarming across my legs.”
“I remember trying to drink some water but spitting it out because it was boiling hot.
Some other runners were also trapped with her in the deadly forest fire fighting for their survival.
She added, “I remember seeing bits of my skin stuck to the rocks and spinifex.”
The small group of people managed to construct a parasol to provide shade for the injured, including Turia and Kate Anderson.
The model said while she was fighting for her life and going through excruciating pain, the thought of her partner, Michael Hoskin, comforted her a bit.
“I remember thinking about Michael, my Michael,” she said. “I remember telling myself, ‘Think of his warm face, think of his honey voice, think of his golden skin. Keep thinking about Michael’.
“I remember the bubbling feeling of panic as the hours dragged on. Wanting to be rescued. Needing someone to tell me everything was going to be OK,” Pitt added.
Following the accident, Turia’s boyfriend, Michael Hoskin, who used to work as a police officer back then, quit his job to take care of her and stood by her throughout her difficult time.
The couple, who first met in high school in 2009, is still together today, happy and content with life, and share two sons together – Hakavai and Rahiti Hoskin.
Four years after the incident, Michael proposed to Turia with a diamond ring that he bought for her when she was in the intensive care unit after fighting for her life.
“When Turia was in intensive care four years ago I bought a diamond ring,” Hoskin told Daily Mail in an interview.
Meanwhile, Turia said she could not be more thankful to God for blessing her with a man like Michael, who never left her side even for a second after the tragedy.
“The fire has just made me more grateful than I was and for every day that I have. Going to sleep next to my partner I never thought anything of before. Now I think lucky am I get to sleep next to this beautiful man. He’s a good guy and I’m very lucky to have him,” the mum-of-two said.
“Every day I wake up beside Michael is a great day.”
After the horrific incident, Pitt spent over two years in recovery, underwent 200 operations and surgeries, and lost seven fingers.
But she patiently endured all the pain and suffering and remained grateful to God for giving her a second life.
“By practising gratitude, you’re consciously searching for what you have in your life to be grateful for, you’re focusing on the positives, and that in turns helps you develop a more positive mindset,” she told Mecca’s The Memo in 2021.
Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
Sources: Daily Mail – Mecca’s The Memo – Turia Pitt’s Website
