Why do we do this?
By Seiji Uchida, a promoter of The Dreams Mountaineering Team

It would be a real miracle if I, someone suffering from severe physical challenges, could ever find my way to the top of a mountain 4000 meters (about 13,000 feet) above sea level. Even though nobody has yet taken up this challenge, it is a dream for the future.

As the result of an accident, I injured my cervical vertebrae, and consequently, became quadriplegic. Because I cannot use my hands to write with a pen, I am writing this now by typing slowly on a keyboard.

My accident happened when I was a college student. Before the accident, I had an active, full life and had big plans for my future. So when the accident happened, I despaired of my life, feeling my disability had killed my chances of freedom and all my hopes and dreams. I found it difficult to feed myself or go to the toilet, much less think at all of my future.

In Japan, there are approximately 2.4 million people who are physically challenged, more than one in every hundred people. We might not be able to live the same sort of life as the non-challenged so far, but there is hope for the future. This hope could be realized by a caring society or else by some spontaneous actions by the challenged.

It was three years ago that I met Kyoga Ide, whose goal was to climb to the top of the Breithorn. He suffered from the severely disabling disease of muscular dystrophy, and he could not walk by himself. He was only 13 years old and he said to me that he wanted to climb the mountain together with his classmates’ assistance. When I heard him, my thought was that this would be really difficult, as even professional mountain porters can barely climb a mountain carrying a 60 kilogram disabled person.

One thought was to use a helicopter to make this dream come true. But his final method of reaching the top was with the support and assistance of many supporters like his classmates. Kyoga tells me that this experience has taught him what hope truly means.

The year before last, my wife gave birth to twin sons. I am struggling with the problems of bringing them up now. On the one hand, they have filled me with the happiness of being a father. On the other hand, I am not strong enough to pick them up and set them back on their feet when they fall over. However, I think I can teach them how beautiful and inspiring life can be.

I have a dream that by helping physically challenged people and non-challenged people share the same wishes and goals, they build up a relationship and come to discover their mutual need for each other.

A lot of friends share this desire and try to work together. Thank you for encouraging us to face and meet our challenges.


Seiji Uchida
The Dreams Mountaineering Team Promoter