Bethany Hamilton

Bethany's Surfboard after the Attack

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to live with one arm? Bethany Hamilton has lived it. On October 31, 2003, while she was surfing off the coast of Hawaii, a fourteen-foot tiger shark attacked her and ripped off her arm. She managed to escape but they could not save her arm. However, they did save her life.

Bethany Hamilton was only thirteen when the shark attacked her. The shark took a 16-inch bite out of her board. So when she started to surf again her brother painted a series of black stripes on her board that mimicked a poisonous sea creature. In 2004 she got two medals. One was for the best come back athlete and the second was for courage when she started to surf again.

I think that for someone to be a hero they have to be brave and confident. That is exactly what Bethany Hamilton did when she started to surf again. She always stayed confident even though a shark attacked her. No matter how many times she fell off her board, she got back on again.

Another quality of a hero is being strong, which is exactly what she was when she was in the hospital. She was also religious. When people would tease her or when she would feel down she would stay strong and pray.

She didn't give up

Bethany Hamilton is important to a lot of people all over the world that are missing limbs. She gives them confidence. Bethany Hamilton has made a difference in my life because I know that if she can make it in the world then so can I. Upon researching Bethany Hamilton I have learned that a lot of bad things happen in this world and it is okay because there are some things you just can’t stop but you can deal with them.