The League of Champions

Today's Question(s) for the Reader:

1) What is an opportunity you have experienced or will experience in your life for which you are incredibly grateful?


Wake-up Call

This blog is dedicated to my friend Chris.

Chris and I aren't great friends--we don't hang out all the time and I've never met his parents. Chris and I really don't even know each other that well. What I do know of Chris is that both of our families have lake cottages on Wawasee and we both like to wakeboard and party in the summertime. I know that I enjoy his company, that he is very active, and that he laughs a lot. Everything I know about Chris tells me that he is a great guy.

"On Sunday afternoon (8-8-10 @ 5pm), Chris sustained an injury that fractured the C4 and C5 vertebrae in his neck. He was airlifted to Methodist Hospital (Neuro Critical care Unit) in Indianapolis. On Monday (8-9-10) at 2pm, Chris underwent surgery for 3-4 hours to fuse together the broken vertebrae and to stabilize them from causing any further damage. At this moment, Chris is mostly unable to move from the shoulders down."

This is excerpt from an online journal kept on Chris. I was informed of his injury soon after I arrived in Finland by mutual friends. My heart sank. Questions raced through my mind as I processed what had happened.

Can this be real? Might he really be paralyzed from the neck-down?

This can be fixed, right? A guy like that can't have this happen permanently.

How could this happen? He's young, healthy, and vibrant. He doesn't deserve this.

Why him?

And then I prayed and prayed and prayed. Just like everyone back home.

And, just like everyone else, I had to face the reality this can happen to guys like that. It can happen to anyone.

We've heard it all before: Life is short. Life is fragile. Give thanks. Carpe diem. The list goes on.

As we carry on in our daily routines the weight of those phrases beings to lesson. Life is short and fragile and blah blah blah... Gotta get to work, gotta write this essay, gotta pay this bill, gotta ace this test, ugh I hate my job, ugh that woman drives me crazy, ugh please let this week be over.

It's the tragic moments in our lives, the wake-up calls, that shoot us back to reality.

Planes fly into twin towers. 33 killed in a university massacre. 28-year-old girl dies of massive heart attack. Friend broke his neck and may be a quadriplegic.

Upon learning of these tragedies, we are silent and reflect.

And then it hits us: Life is fragile.

So what do we do about it?

That is what I'm trying to figure out as I peck away at my computer in my little apartment in Aland. I'm looking out my window. It's a gorgeous day. A Finnish woman with white-blond hair and a leather jacket just rode by on her bicycle. A tiny European car just pulled into the lot. Leaves rustle from the island breeze. I feel thankful to be here and for this opportunity and I wonder if that is enough. Are we ever thankful enough?

So far in my life, I have been lucky enough to be spared extreme tragedy. Gunshots were never fired at my university and I'm not in a neuro critical care unit hoping to recover my ability to move. And not only have I been spared such horror, but I have been blessed in countless ways. I have spent my life surrounded by loving people and have been given great opportunities. I am so grateful.

So again? What do we do about it?

What do we do for those who were not spared? What about my friend Chris, who lives in a Rehabilitation Hospital and has endless hours of therapy ahead of him with hopes that he may one day return to his life as he once knew it?


The Inspiration

Today I will play in biggest game of my life. In just over 3 hours, I will play in the European Champions League and face FFC Turbine Potsdam.

Potsdam, a city just southwest of Berlin, boasts this team of Champions League defending champs. Every single woman on the team is German with the exception of one Japanese National team player. Many of her German teammates also complete in International play. In last year's Champions League, they also drew the Finnish champions for the first round and beat them 8-0. I have seen video of them play. They are strong, fast, and their passes are precise and played with extreme pace. They are incredible football players--some of the best I have ever seen.

In short, we are the underdog.

I have 30 minutes until I will leave my apartment and ride my bike to our home-pitch. My heart is racing. I am nervous. I have heard that everyone from island is going to be there. I have never played for a crowd this big. No one expects us to win.

And maybe we won't. But I don't care. This is one of the greatest opportunities of my life. Not many Americans, men or women, have been given this chance to play in the European Champions League. I am thankful. We have nothing to lose. I love this sport and I get to be in the starting 11 against some of the best players in the world. I am excited. Even if we lose 12-0, I am thankful for this opportunity. And maybe, just maybe, we won't.

After over a month of rehab, Chris posted this in his online journal:

"Today came the biggest news yet. With the help of two therapists, I was able to completely put pressure on both legs and my spine, and stand completely upright for about 20 seconds!!! I didn't think I was ready, didn't think that would happen for several more weeks, but my legs have gotten stronger and it shows."

Chris, you are an inspiration. I read your journal every day. And now, without fear and because life is short and fragile, I'm about to play my ass off in the biggest game of my life.

Here we go, United!



Don't forget Today's Question for the Reader!