What exactly happened to Don Elkins?

[YinYang]

But we are as subject to the paradoxes as Don, Carla, and Jim were

A lot of the way things turned out, serves as a tremendous teaching tool in itself, very directly for Carla and Jim, but also for us. We can take Don's "mistakes", and learn from them and realize the importance of open communication, trust and faith. Now that 32 years has passed, the tragic nature of the events have less sting, and the momentous achievement is all that remains. The body is but a thing of yesterday.