David Last’s book, Forged by Limitation, is aptly published by a company called Journey Institute Press. It is indeed the story of a journey — more like a roller-coaster ride — that starts with his cerebral palsy diagnosis at the age of 11 months and meanders through his childhood, high school and an attempt at college.
Last’s journey culminates in his deep sense of self-realization and his ability to share the lessons he has learned about perseverance and triumph over difficulties.
David Last, 26, is a member of a prominent Denver Jewish family — the son of Rabbi Ben and Cheryl Last, grandson of Roz Duman and the late Dr. Sidney Duman, and great-grandson of the late Rabbi Samuel Adelman of BMH. He is a 2018 graduate of Denver Jewish Day School, which he attended grades 1-12.
Last starts Forged by Limitations at the rock-bottom lowest point of his roller-coaster ride, when he is on the verge of taking his own life during his short-lived stint at college in New York.
From there, each chapter in the book starts with a different age or school year in his life, revealing the myriad physical and emotional challenges posed by living with CP.
The book, as Last puts it, is “non-linear.” It is presented as a series of flashbacks. The chapters jump around — 10th grade, then age six, then high school graduation, then 11th grade and so on.
After going through each challenge — ranging from anticipating or recovering from surgeries to falling and getting injured to feeling lonely and isolated and moments of achievement and satisfaction — Last shares what he learned from each of those struggles and offers advice on pushing ahead in life.
Speaking to the Intermountain Jewish News, Last says that his book did not start out as a book. After he returned to Denver from his short time in college in New York, his psychologist suggested that he write down his feelings as journal entries — a common therapeutic technique.
“I was looking at the journal entries I had, and I thought, ‘This could be at least a chapter of a book,’” he recalls.
Last sent one of his journal entries to a close friend without telling him who wrote it. “I asked him to tell me what he thought about it without any context. He said, ‘Whoever wrote the first chapter of this book is very talented.’”
This vote of confidence set Last on his course of organizing and expanding his honest and revealing journal entries, resulting in the publication in 2025 of Forged by Limitations.
He summarizes the book in its introduction:
“On my journey though life, I have faced many obstacles. I have had a total of eight surgeries so far, some planned and some not. I’ve had many types of therapy — physical, occupational and psychological, in one form or another — since the age of three.
“I have had battles with depression and other emotional problems, and more falls than I care to count, just to name a few. Also, I have many learning challenges, such and reading and writing disabilities, so my education came with its own obstacles.
“Through hard work, I did my best to look for the bright side of every challenge I faced. I tried my hardest to learn and grow from every experience. With every obstacle, I learned and appreciated a new truth about life. Each challenge allowed me to test my mettle and see what I was truly made of. Through it all, I always tried to prove that my CP would never stop me from doing anything in this life.”
In each chapter, after describing the challenges he dealt with in different stages of his childhood and adolescence, Last shares what he learned, often in the form of metaphors, and what he admits are cliches.
“These are things people always knew, and only when I was writing was I able to refine and polish them,” he says.
An example from the chapter on happiness:
“Happiness can be found everywhere; sometimes you have to find it, and sometimes it finds you. Joy is one of the best things humans can experience; life is not worth it unless you are happy.”
Last’s book does not preach religion, but Judaism has definitely figured into his outlook and ability to ultimately overcome obstacles.
“There were times that it was hard to accept that these things were happening to me for a reason. But at the end of the day, it was a huge comfort to me to have G-d, Who is much, much bigger and smarter than I, and let Him figure out my problems for a while.”
With the accomplishment of writing his book and getting it published in Last’s rear-view mirror, he is now looking ahead to his next “chapter.” He is working on a sci-fi novel and a book about mental health.
He is also working on becoming a motivational speaker to go into high schools and youth groups to talk about mental health.
“I think that my experience shows that everyone needs to be better in touch with their feelings. There’s still a stigma around mental health that we definitely want to get rid of.”
Last’s goal for his book was for it to be “inspirational.”
The way he describes his lowest lows and highest highs, followed by uplifting retrospection, works. He accomplished his goal.
He is inspiring.
© IJN 2026
