Extraordinary Teens, Mysticism, reading, forums, Numerology, Sun Signs, Divination

Posts: 5109 · Posted: Thu Dec 24, 2009 7:20 am

The limits of our strength are immeasurable until tested in compromising situations.

Quick Facts:

Endured a spinal cord injury on the football field at age 14
The injury rendered him a quadriplegic at age 14
Graduated with a 4.0 GPA from his high school in the top 10% of his class with over 700 seniors
Won Prom King and Homecoming Court
Received the AJC Cup for outstanding academic achievements
Earned his academic pin and letter
Voted most unforgettable and Mr. Eagle for senior superlatives
Currently a student at Emory University
Actor on Emory's college campus in an ensemble called Issues Troupe where he co-hosts a web-based show highlighting the culture and entertainment of Atlanta
Pursuing a career in acting and law
Motivational speaker
Sometimes, certain things happen in life and we don't understand why. We may be excited about certain unexpected events and other times challenges can arise that really test our character. But it's important to remember that every event or circumstance in life brings with it an opportunity to grow mentally and emotionally -- if we have the right outlook.

Everyone remembers September 11, 2001. But for me, this was also a significant day for another reason. After the World Trade Center had fallen that morning, I remember wondering if we were going to have football practice after school. At the time, I was fourteen years old.

From the beginning of that fateful day, I had this strange feeling that something was going to happen in addition to what we'd seen that morning on the television. I guess I didn't pay much attention to my feeling because I confused it with all of the chaos that was happening as a result of the disaster in New York.

Well, by the end of the school day, I was told we were having practice to prepare for an important upcoming game. On top of that, I was also put into a new position that day. At first, it seemed like any other day at practice -- nothing unusual. But in a matter of one second, everything changed and my life would never be the same.

During a scrimmage game, I ran down the field for the first time in the quick corner position when I went in to tackle an opposing teammate running in my direction. I tackled him hard and as my head went down I immediately felt a strange crack in my neck. After that, I could not feel anything. I blacked out for several moments and vaguely remember that I could barely breathe. As I came back into consciousness, an intense feeling of fear came over me. I screamed, "I can't move my arms! I can't move my arms!" I was in shock and really odd sensations shot throughout my body.

When the ambulance arrived, the paramedics had to cut my helmet off and as they did I was told that I was crying out to speak with my mom, who was on the phone with my trainer. Once my helmet was off they lifted me up and took me away. Everything felt bizarre. The movements I thought I felt in my body began to fade. I seemed to lose my sense of control about what I was actually feeling and what I was imagining. At one point my feet hurt and I asked the paramedics around me to take my shoes off, but my shoes had already been removed.

I was in the hospital for a week and to add to my frustration, I had lost everything that I had been working for in terms of my physical conditioning and muscle mass. My parents then took me to Shepherd Center, a hospital that specialized in spinal cord injuries. I'll never forget those first six weeks when I had to wear a halo screwed into my head as all of the doctors and nurses tended to me. It was a feeling of absolute helplessness. All I wanted to do was help myself, but I couldn't.

I'm not sure when I finally embraced the reality of my situation, but I do know that it didn't happen in one single moment. My parents had always taught me that when things don't go your way, you hold your head up and press on. Looking back, it feels as though I "lost myself" for about two weeks as I tried to get used to my new body after fracturing my fifth vertebrae. Nonetheless, I could feel myself slowly growing into a new person and seeing things differently.

Since I was well aware that complaining was not going to help anything, I began focusing on overcoming my situation one day at a time, thinking about the ways I could best adapt to my new body. Today, it's hard to believe that seven years have passed. Even so, every day is still a struggle. Not being able to walk is the least of my worries. In the beginning, when I was learning to accept my new circumstances, I had to learn how to depend on people (even strangers). This wasn't easy to do because I had prided myself on being such an independent person prior to the accident. I'm lucky to have twenty-four-hour nursing care, but I do have moments when I need to be alone just like anyone else. I certainly have my "bad days" and frustrating moments, but I know that life always has its ups and downs. Believe me, I know how easy it is to get into a funk and want to give up, but those are the times we can really grow by taking that extra step when we don't really feel like it. I've had lots of those "moments" but they have also made me who I am today. We can't let our spirit die at age fourteen or at thirty or even sixty for that matter! I'm twenty-one now and I still live by that rule.

No matter the challenges, giving up is not an option. It's up to each one of us to discover what methods work for our own needs. I have an injury now, so I am always searching for ways to help me deal with that in a better way. And it does help that I'm competitive at heart because it gives me some added inspiration to exceed expectations. It amuses me when I hear something like "you can't do this." I don't get worked up about it; I just work on showing them that their mental limitations do not need to be mine as well.

I've always been told that I have an old soul. I truly felt I had potential in sports, but my accident forced me to face and accept a new pathway -- a new pathway that has helped me form a new definition of potential. The reality is, there's always somebody who has it worse so we don't have any right to complain. It pains me to see people who take their life for granted and don't appreciate the most basic abilities and freedoms they have such as being able to walk outside to get the mail or take out the trash; the opportunity to go to school (and even work for that matter); the right to drive a car. When we really appreciate those things, it's difficult to have a victim mentality. Be positive -- that is a choice we all have. We never know what skills and abilities we have in ourselves until we push ourselves beyond what we can already do -- physically, mentally, and emotionally. The mind is the biggest, strongest "muscle" in the body. I know this because it's the one thing that got me through my challenges. If you don't think you know what you're meant to be doing in life try tapping into the higher-power already working within you and your purpose will find you. That higher-power never let go of me when I fell that day on the field. I just recognized it and built on it one day at a time.

When people ask me what I want to do professionally long term, I don't have a clear answer for them, but that's okay because I'm confident that opportunity will present itself as I continue to work hard. Right now, my education comes first -- it's simply a foundation for success down whatever path we decide to take later in life. I like to think the road to success will present itself as I move forward -- and the key words there are "move forward" because life rewards those who keep taking action to focus on the good things in life. I keep Ralph Waldo Emerson's famous saying in the back of my mind: To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.

It's natural to think that I regret going to practice on September 11, 2001, but I don't. It has been part of my journey in life and I tell people that my accident has become a tool for me to simply experience life in a different way. We should never be afraid to do anything -- life is too short for that. I tell other young people when I speak at schools not to be afraid of football. Instead, I tell them to use me as a reminder to know that whenever they play football, or sing, or dance, etc., to participate as though it were your last time. To get the most out of life, we must live in gratitude, not fear. Remember, the limits to our strength are immeasurable. I didn't quite understand that concept before my accident, but now I know from personal experience it is the truth. We can do so much more than we even think possible.

Love yourself, love others, and most importantly, love life. It truly is an amazing gift we have all been given.