Cairns author Paul Innes hopes ‘Make or Break’ will challenge and inspire readers
A Cairns businessman has opened up about the fateful day a simple swim changed the rest of his life and how he was able to rise above the devastating news that would have left most people broken.
Cairns
Don't miss out on the headlines from Cairns. Followed categories will be added to My News.
When he was just 20 years old, a Cairns business owner swam headfirst into a boulder at the Barron River, in a moment that would forever change his life.
Paul Innes has now released a book detailing the accident that left him a quadriplegic.
Make or Break: The Extraordinary Life of Paul Innes recounts how a swimming incident in Kuranda left him paralysed with a C4 spinal cord injury, meaning he would use a wheelchair for the majority of his life.
“I had only swum a few body lengths when my head hit a rock that wasn’t usually there,” Mr Innes writes.
“It stunned me, and I felt a sharp pain across the top of my head.
“My natural instinct was to feel what had happened to the top of my head and to lift my face out of the water for a breath.
“I could not move my arms or my head and simply floated to the top of the water.
“ … In that moment, the freedom and vigour that I enjoyed as a happy young man with a healthy body was to be lost for the rest of my life.”
Despite enduring an injury that would have broken most people, Mr Innes said that fateful day was the making of him.
Instead of being weakened by his injury, the accident empowered him.
Since that fateful injury, Mr Innes has since then been a champion of disability services, performed stand-up comedy and inspired others with his life story.
Mr Innes talks in his book about the ways his life changed both spiritually and physically.
“I need help with a lot of things,” Mr Innes said.
“But I can do some things myself.
“I had to learn to write again, this time with my mouth.”
Four years after his accident, he embarked on a journey to become an author and share his fight with others.
Mr Innes said putting his story in words forced him to think about what parts of his life he wanted to share with the world.
“Writing your life story is challenging and confronting,” he said.
“It forces you to define your morals and understand your own fears and how you see the world.”
“It’s challenging to revisit precious memories and then put them into words, but it’s ultimately rewarding to the heart and soul.”
Thirty-four years after an accident that left him a quadriplegic, he said he is living his best life as a writer, stand-up comedian and musician.
“Some of the things that have happened to me, I’ve turned into jokes now,” Mr Innes said.
“Writing your life story, you have to be funny in places, but you can’t give away all your jokes at the same time.”
Mr Innes will launch his memoir Make or Break at the Cairns Art Gallery on Saturday, February 25.
More Coverage
Originally published as Cairns author Paul Innes hopes ‘Make or Break’ will challenge and inspire readers
Helicopter sent to man trapped in truck on PDR
A man remains trapped in the cab of a truck on a remote Cape York road after rolling his vehicle. The rescue chopper has just landed at the scene.
Stunning images and footage of major army exercise
Stunning images from a major army exercise offer an insider’s perspective on the large-scale training held this week at Cowley Beach in Queensland, where soldiers honed their skills in handling large volumes of fuel.