A moment that changed me: my brother gave me an unexpected gift – and a whole new life at sea

The water was my childhood playground but, as I grew up, my health left me landbound. Then my brother found a way to launch me back into the waves ... My brother and I grew up surfing at Porthcawl in south Wales. My earliest memories are of playing in the waves and I learned to bodyboard not long after I learned to walk. When I lost the use of my legs, I felt as if I had lost the sea – and a part of who I was. I was in my teens when I started to develop chronic illnesses, including endometriosis. At first, I was still able to surf – I just needed to rest afterwards. Then, in my early 20s, I developed further chronic conditions, including a connective tissue disorder that affected my joints a

What is happening The Guardian reports: The water was my childhood playground but, as I grew up, my health left me landbound. Then my brother found a way to launch me back into the waves ... My brother and I grew up surfing at Porthcawl in south Wales. My earliest memories are of playing in the waves and I learned to bodyboard not long after I learned to walk. When I lost the use of my legs, I felt as if I had lost the sea – and a part of who I was. I was in my teens when I started to develop chronic illnesses, including endometriosis. At first, I was still able to surf – I just needed to rest afterwards. Then, in my early 20s, I developed further chronic conditions, including a connective tissue disorder that affected my joints a The problem The public problem in this report is the one named by the source: “A moment that changed me: my brother gave me an unexpected gift – and a whole new life at sea”. A response on MLAIEL should not add a cause, a number, or a remedy the source does not state. Open the source for the detail. What a team can do on MLAIEL A team can read the access or inclusion barrier the source names and open a project for people who can respond without inventing a policy the source did not state. Source The Guardian — A moment that changed me: my brother gave me an unexpected gift – and a whole new life at sea https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2026/sep/23/a-moment-that-changed-me-my-brother-gave-me-an-unexpected-gift-and-a-whole-new-life-at-sea