Wednesday, July 29, 2015

An Attitude of Gratitude

Never Give up! We have heard all too often this cliche catch phrase used for encouragement. People offer it up good-naturally when one hits a bump in the road on a journey toward accomplishing a goal or endeavor. I think, although simplistic and perhaps cliche, certainly holds truth. The saying reminds me of an autobiographical book I read several years ago written by motivational speaker, gifted painter, and quadriplegic Ron Heagy entitled Never Give Up: How Tragedy Taught me Life is An Attitude. Ron's Book on Amazon. He cultivated an attitude of gratitude as well as determination. He did not give up on himself and his capabilities. I read this not long after our own family was shaken by a tragedy very similar to Mr. Heagy's own. His story not only hit so uncannily close to home, but was seriously one of the most inspirational books I have ever read. At 17, Ron was rendered a quadriplegic after a diving accident on a seemingly care-free day of surfing with his brother on the Pacific coast. He dove head first into a sand bar which fractured his spine, and in an instant his life was dramatically changed forever. Yet with incredible endurance and faith in his new-found purpose and in God, he remained positive and steadfast in accomplishing some major lifetime achievements. He went on to become a spell bounding, motivational speaker and counseling others with similar disabilities. And he became a painter!

I have to say his attitude about life resonated with me. While I have not personally
experienced severe suffering, illness, or injury, I have come to appreciate the stories and experiences of others for them to have had a profound enough effect. What is life-changing enough in your world to have such a profound effect on accomplishing your health goals? Short-term goals such as getting in better shape for any upcoming event whether it be summer swimsuit season, a high school reunion, wedding, Mardi Gras ball, whatever, may be well reason enough, and certainly I admit my reasons can be short-sighted like those as well. That is not a bad thing by all means, but I also in the long-term want to be healthy and fit for my family- my husband and children. I want to have energy to keep up with my kids and to be the best version of myself for them. And yet it goes even beyond that too!

My inspiration to foster an attitude of gratitude is Brant's story. On July 23, 2006,  nine years ago on a Saturday afternoon, my mom called me and said Brant had been a terrible accident. He was on a leisure trip in Cozumel, Mexico with friends and co-workers. All he had done was simply dive into a "shallow" pool, which may not have meant much to us regular 5-foot-something-ers, but for a 6 '6" person it was by all means shallow enough to cause a devastating injury. His C5 vertebral body was shattered and his spinal cord severely bruised. They had to fly Brant from the accident location in Cozumel, Mexico back to San Antonio, Texas where he lived at the time! Immediately after hearing the news, my family which included myself and my mom, dad, and sister Juliet, drove overnight to meet him at the hospital in San Antonio. I will never forget Brant's reaction to seeing us at his side that night. Although he couldn't speak well at the time, his eyes showed relief and comfort to know we were there. He knew the severity of the injuries he had sustained and he looked at me and with breathy almost inaudible words said "I won't be able to walk again". Like a punch to the heart, tears flowed. My mother, ever the epitome of strength and faith, never left his side and supported him through this difficult realization. After that night and a 9 hour surgery the next day (an attempt to repair the shattered vertebral body) and many MRIs later, the extent and graveness of the injury was clear. Brant was now a quadriplegic and would likely never walk again.
He endured a significantly tragic loss in the blink-of-an-eye. Yet, he has handled it with such amazing strength and perseverance. From the beginning, Brant did not wallow in self-pity at all, and he seemed to have an outlook on the situation like "it is what it is......now how do I go about living my life". I dare say, if I were the one injured, hopelessness and depression likely would have consumed me. And in Ron Heagy's story, it almost did consume him! Yet his faith, his family, and his purpose for living kept him from sinking! On the day the news of Brant's accident reached my ears, my heart sunk with sadness as I feared all what he would have to go through rehabilitating from this accident. An athlete. A runner. He was just starting to complete triathlons, and truly in the best physical shape of his life. His world was now changed forever, but he remained optimistic and determined through the recovery process.
First several weeks of recovery in physical therapy
Many of us know Superman's story. Christopher Reeves became a quadriplegic in 1995 after being thrown from a horse during an equestrian competition in Virginia. His story, while vaguely remembered in my mind, took on a whole new meaning. I saw someone going through this catastrophic injury, an up-close and personal Superman of mine was having to experience this! Not only a loss of movement, but a loss of independence. Especially for a person who was so incredibly independent! Brant finished in chemical engineering at Louisiana Tech University and was thriving in a career at Valero Energy in San Antonio, Texas. He was always so confident, not arrogant, but genuinely confident in his abilities. He was a track athlete and cross-country runner in high school and at LaTech. He always had an "I'm capable" attitude. Brant, would always tell me (and still does!), "..you don't like the way you look Diana, change it, do something about it" Only you can!
Brant running for Louisiana Tech University
So I don't share the story of the pains of his accident with you to belabor a pity party for him or for our family. I share this with you to further drive home the point of why I am so passionate, so on fire, about living a healthy life. This is why I have decided to make health and fitness a long-term lifestyle change. My brother and I, our family really, have always been very close. Watching him in the first few weeks of enduring his accident brought me to tears so often, but his attitude had inspired me. If you can imagine your life for just a day, an hour, a few minutes confined to a wheelchair, would you perhaps change your perspective on health, fitness, and exercise? I have legs that work. I can feel them. I can feel them when they are sore and tired. I can feel them when they are strong and sweaty. (Sounding a little "I do not like green eggs and ham"-ish, sorry, I am trying to make a point here Sam I Am!). My legs bend, squat, flex, kick, dance. I don't mind taking the stairs. My fingers can wrap around a fork, tie a shoe, and knit if I was so inclined to learn the dexterous skill of it. My brain can send out a message to move that is not stopped dead in its track down the spinal cord, but is transmitted and interpreted. Neurotransmitters are fired, connect with their receptors, and actin, myosin, calcium all work to make the muscle fiber bundles contract. A little too detailed on the biology? Perhaps so, but it is an extraordinarily intricate gift of how God created our bodies to move. Think of all the biological mechanisms involved in our body's ability to walk, talk, jump, dance.......not to mention the intellectual capacity of the human brain! Be exceedingly grateful for it.
My family at Christmas 2014
I  have been wanting to start a blog for quite some time now, but I just really never knew what to do it on. I wasn't sure what I had to offer you. I am still not a 100% sure, but I know what I can offer. I can offer encouragement, positivism, kindness, hope, and faith. Although I haven't personally endured Brant's tragedy nor do I have a dramatic Subway success story of losing 40lbs and want to share with you how I did it, I do have quite a bit of information to offer. I have read a great deal of nutrition and health-related books (reading 2 simultaneously now!), have a veterinary medicine degree, and have worked for the past 3 years on several nutritional studies at LSU. Furthermore, this blog is not about a weight loss journey, in fact I have always been slim, instead its a journey about personal refinement...a striving for living gratefully minded and that being an impetus for better health and fitness. I have lived with insecurity, negativity, pessimism, and even depression, and I do not want to live that way ever again no matter the circumstances! God has been good to me, and I have too much to be grateful for and to remain healthy for in my life. Ron Heagy's and Brant's stories are certainly tragedies, but the inspiration in them is that attitude, especially an attitude of gratitude, can be so receptive to others. I know it has been quite an ignition of inspiration to me as I hope for you all too.

Ron's book and a great inspiration for anyone!

Gratefully,
Diana

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