Hindsight

Published 4:13 pm Thursday, October 2, 2008

4 a.m. May 17, 2006: Doctors and police estimated the 15-year-old was traveling at speeds in excess of 50 mph on a longboard (a long skateboard) when he struck a parked SUV.

One month later Joe Pyles awoke from an induced coma, every bone in his face broken, missing his right leg and without eyesight. A month and a half afterward, Joe left the hospital.

The image above, made Aug. 9, 2006, at the Cascade Rehabilitation Center, has hung above my desk since the day I met Joe a little over two years ago. His determination, resilience and humor amazed me that day.