In 1995, Molly Hale broke her neck in a car accident.
"Lying in bed in the intensive care unit, hours after being extracted from my car, I remember the surreal experience of listening to the sounds of voices fading in and out 'her neck is broken... we can take the pressure off the cord... paralyzed from the shoulders down... people don't come back from this�'"
In 2001, sitting in a wheelchair and also on the mat in the studio, Molly earned her third degree black belt in Aikido.
"I never went through the 'why me' stuff," says Molly. "Pretty much from the beginning, because the car rolled over and my three passengers were basically unhurt, this seemed like a strategic strike intended for me. Because as the car came to a rest upside down and a voice said 'Molly Ruth get back in your body,' I had a choice to stay or let go. As I observed myself choosing to come back into my body, I knew there was something I was supposed to be doing.
"All my life seemed like preparation for this experience. I had long studied mind-body relationships, and had never thought of myself as being just my body. These experiences allowed me to bring an alternative approach to my injury and thus, my life.
"It's easy to talk of kindness, compassion, loving action, perseverance, and right action when life is moving along easily. This was to be the true test."