Uniforms.
"the uniform we get in life is often better than the one we thought we wanted..."
-Josh Sundquist
-Josh Sundquist
Tonight I took advantage of yet another opportunity to hear and learn something new from a speaker who visited campus this evening, Josh Sundquist. I had never heard of him before and the only thing I knew going in tonight was that he was going to speak about disability awareness. Ok, I'll go. Besides, I offered it as an assignment for my students to go and write a reflection paper so I figured I'd better have an idea of what they saw.
So this Josh guy? Yep, Total B-A. As a 9 year old who dreamed of playing soccer after seeing an older lad donning a traveling soccer uniform, he found out he had a rare form of bone cancer in his leg, a 50/50 survival rate, and ended up having to amputate his leg to stay alive after a year of chemo. There went his dream of playing soccer. But that 9 year old with one leg? He went on at the age of 16 to join a ski racing team, competed for 6 seasons all across the globe, and in 2006, was named to the US Paralympic Ski Team. And that uniform he wanted to wear as a 9 year old? It was replaced by a ski uniform proudly displaying three little letters, "U. S. A."
His speech tonight was filled with stories, anecdotes, and challenges to those in attendance to rise above, not let challenges prevent you from succeeding, and not falling down (or at the least, being able to laugh at yourself and getting right back up!)
And though I am not a person with a disability, his speech did impact me and made me walk out thinking about all the uniforms I thought I wanted in life and the uniforms I've worn instead. They apply to personal social identities, professional plans, and relationships. I most definitely haven't worn the uniforms I thought I wanted. But the ones I wore/am wearing? I'll say it all turned out alright...Yes, indeedy.
Cheers.
So this Josh guy? Yep, Total B-A. As a 9 year old who dreamed of playing soccer after seeing an older lad donning a traveling soccer uniform, he found out he had a rare form of bone cancer in his leg, a 50/50 survival rate, and ended up having to amputate his leg to stay alive after a year of chemo. There went his dream of playing soccer. But that 9 year old with one leg? He went on at the age of 16 to join a ski racing team, competed for 6 seasons all across the globe, and in 2006, was named to the US Paralympic Ski Team. And that uniform he wanted to wear as a 9 year old? It was replaced by a ski uniform proudly displaying three little letters, "U. S. A."
His speech tonight was filled with stories, anecdotes, and challenges to those in attendance to rise above, not let challenges prevent you from succeeding, and not falling down (or at the least, being able to laugh at yourself and getting right back up!)
And though I am not a person with a disability, his speech did impact me and made me walk out thinking about all the uniforms I thought I wanted in life and the uniforms I've worn instead. They apply to personal social identities, professional plans, and relationships. I most definitely haven't worn the uniforms I thought I wanted. But the ones I wore/am wearing? I'll say it all turned out alright...Yes, indeedy.
Cheers.
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