After All These Years: The Complete Story of How I Lost My Eye, Not Just the Gory Ending

<blockquote> I’m often asked to tell the story of how I lost my eye. Except people don’t want the whole story, just the gory final scene. This is a shame because there is more to it than the blood and guts, and until now, that’s the only part of the story I have told. Today, that changes. From now on, if you want the final scene, you have to sit through the movie — no skipping to the end. Looking back, this seems more like a movie script than real life. However, to the best of my recollection, this is the true story. </blockquote> “HAVE YOU GOT A FUCKEN DEATH WISH KID!!” They were the first words the old man said to me, and the memory of his face inches away from mine, combined with the steel-like grip he had on the back of my neck, is like it happened yesterday. I can smell the rum on his breath and feel his spit and the sea spray against my face. “I could give you the names of two people that have died doing what you are doing right now, off this ledge. Two people. Gone. Never coming back. You will be feeding the sharks before you can blink an eye.” Yep, the first meeting with Cliff is as clear as day. Twenty seconds earlier, I thought I was about to die. Suddenly, he appeared out of nowhere, saved my life, then scared me into next week. When I was around thirteen, our family bought a caravan in an old caravan park on the coast, about three hours from where we lived. It was the holiday house for the less well-off, a run-down park with no facilities, but it was right on the edge of the ocean on one side, the forests of Eucalyptus Gumtrees on the other, and we loved it. <a href="https://medium.com/@matt_middlo/after-all-these-years-the-complete-story-of-how-i-lost-my-eye-not-just-the-gory-ending-3950844a8d43">Read More</a>