HOME | POLITICS | SPORTS | LIFE | SCI/TECH | OPEDS | HELPFUL TIPS
|
Feb 27, 2004 I was attending a conference about fifteen years ago in San Francisco. A friend and I were sitting in the balcony awaiting the speaker for the opening general session. Typically, the speakers for these gatherings were ex-athletes or celebrities who tailored their presentations for the audience. The lights dimmed as a severely disfigured gentleman appeared on stage seated in an electric wheel chair. The first words out of his mouth were, “it’s not what happens to you in life, but what you do about it.” With a calm but booming voice he proceeded to relate the events that led to his disfiguration and paralysis. At age twenty-two he was returning home on his motorcycle from the local airport where he had just completed his first solo flight. He loved flying and was in a euphoric mood. He was in the final stages of completing lessons and receiving his first pilot’s license. In an instant, one of the greatest days of his young life was turned into one of the most horrific. A man blew threw a stop sign, striking the rear tire of his motorcycle. He was thrown from the cycle to the pavement below. His body bounced along the street, coming to rest a few seconds later. Before he had time to get to his feet the motorcycle hit him from behind. The motorcycle landed on his body and exploded into flames. He sustained third-degree burns over 80% of his body. After three years of extensive and painful therapy, both physical and mental, he decided to pursue his dream and enrolled in flying lessons once again. Four years later, now twenty-nine years old, he had successfully completed his third pilots rating and was qualified to fly twelve passenger airplanes. He organized a vacation trip with some friends where he would be the pilot. During the takeoff, as his plane left the ground, it stalled and dropped back on the runway with a forceful thud. Fearing a gasoline explosion he screamed for his passengers to get out and away from the plane. He unbuckled his seat belt and attempted to stand and follow his friends to safety. He couldn’t move. The sudden drop on the runway had severed his spinal chord. As this inspiring young man related his story to a hushed crowd, the minor problems I had seemed to melt away. Here was a guy who had been involved in two of the most horrifying accidents imaginable telling a perfectly healthy crowd to confront their problems, deal with them, and move on. “He continued to repeat the theme of his message: “It’s not what happens to you in life, but what you do about it.” Later that evening, while sitting alone in my hotel room I gave deep thought to his narrative. It was such a simple message, however so powerful when truly understood. After a devastating event in our life occurs, there is nothing we can do about it. It happened. Now, what are you going to do to move on with your life? That’s where all the focus should be placed. I have many friends who dwell on the past, weather it be a nasty divorce, death in the family, or financial setback. Since that day, I have repeated the young mans message hundreds of times in my mind, to help put things in perspective. Try it the next time life gets you down: “It’s not what happens to you in life, but what you do about it!” It works—it truly works! ------------ About the author: Pete Whalon has just completed a memoir on his Vietnam service. He is self-publishing the book and it should be ready for sale June 1st of this year. Email Pete Whalon: kinoman7@aol.com Tell a friend about this site! ------------ |
||||||
|
|
|||||||
|
