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Inspiration and motivation can come from many sources. Here are 3 stories from 2015 I would like to share.
Mark Miller's Boundless Enthusiasm Working to Recover After Stroke
Five years ago, while he was working in Tanzania, Africa on a UN water project for the Masai, Mark was infected with malaria and typhoid fever. The combined effect of those diseases and his dehydrated state produced a blood clot that led to a stroke at the age of 46.
Since that time, Mark has worked tirelessly to restore as much function as he possibly could and serves as a volunteer spokesperson for the Heart and Stroke Foundation of BC & Yukon. I got to know a bit about Mark and his story when he was a participant in a project aimed at improving walking after stroke that was conducted in my lab.
Despite the fact that many of the activities Mark enjoyed are difficult or almost impossible to do now, he continues to seek creative solutions. Recently an inventor teamed up with him to create a boat allowing for an amazing lake fishing experience.
Jaide Bucher's Supremacy at Softball
Jaide Bucher is a 15 year old high school softball player in Denver, Colorado. Her inspirational story manages to take down two myths of ball. The first is that a left hander usually shouldn't be a catcher. But there have been a few left handed catchers in the history of the game.
What the game hasn't seen was a catcher who only had a left hand. Jaide was born without a right hand and learned to catch with her left hand. Her technique involves quickly transferring the glove to her shortened right arm, and then throwing with her left. She also has a great swing and an amazingly positive attitude in which she wants to "prove people wrong".
As Jaide says, "I play softball and I just happen to have one hand."
Karate Kid Brandon Twaites
When Brandon Twaites of Port Coquitlam, BC, was 6 years old he started training in Goju-ryu karate just like lots of other young kids. Unlike lots of other young kids doing karate, Brandon Twaites has spastic diplegia. This form of cerebral palsy has exaggerated reflexes and makes leg muscles stiffer and hard to control.
To do his training, Brandon has to work hard to learn the skills of his martial art but also has to work against his won body to do so. He was three years old before he was able to walk on his own. Despite that, he is now 3 years into his martial arts journey and continues to inspire at every turn.
When I first heard about Brandon's story I immediately thought of something one of my karate teachers said to me over 30 years ago. Martial arts training isn't just about making the strong stronger. True training is about helping everyone, regardless of ability, get stronger and better.
It is Time to Get Rid of the Word "Disabled"
Once upon a time it would have been routine to describe these three examples as people triumphing despite their "disabilities". With their inspirational stories fresh in our minds I suggest it is well past time to destroy the idea of disability. The word itself reinforces a dichotomy that doesn't exist.
There is no such thing as a category of "able" and and another of "disabled". All areas of human achievement span a continuum of ability and performance. To suggest that there is a single line separating one from the other is simply false. We must all try to consider the stories above and others like them when we see folks of differing abilities.
With a little bit of effort we can all see the potential for achievement that exists within each and every one of us. Including ourselves.
(c) E. Paul Zehr (2015)
