The Gifts Of A Chair...

Last week I submitted an essay to the website http://thisibelieve.org/ .  I received an email reply saying that it might take 6 months for the essay to be posted on the website, if it was approved.  Anyhow, being the impatient human being that I am, I wanted to share the essay before the 6 months were up with my loyal blog followers.  So, here it is:

THE GIFTS OF A CHAIR

I remember my first waking moments in that hospital bed that was my home for eight weeks. I had just woken up from my coma and realized I was paralyzed. I was confused, scared and fragile. It all seemed like a dream. In the beginning, I tried to talk several times, but to no avail. I was dependent on a ventilator to feed me air; otherwise, my lungs would not work. It was so much to take in that I remember focusing on one thing at a time. I do not know how much time I spent focusing on each thing, because, I had lost track of it. Time was something I had plenty of while lying in my hospital bed trying to figure out what had happened to my life.

The week after my 30th birthday, I hit the fichus tree that changed my life forever. I broke several bones, punctured my left lung, and sustained a spinal cord injury. Right away, I could not breathe nor feel my lower body. As the months progressed and I overcame each obstacle, my loved ones and I focused diligently on my spinal cord injury. I did not pay much attention to my weak lungs, or to the simple fact that I had been revived five times. I just wanted to walk. I thought that if I started walking again, everything else would magically get better as well.

Time went on and slowly I realized that walking would not make everything better. Things were already better.

I no longer needed a tracheotomy, much less a ventilator. I was alive and getting stronger by the minute. My loved ones constantly reminded me of their support and that no matter what I would always be me. I was unable to count my infinite blessings. In the beginning, my focus was on the walking, but now, my focus is on living. I learned that living a good life does not require a pair of working legs. Living a good life requires strength of character, courage and lots of faith. I also learned that living a good life requires lots of humility, compassion and most importantly, hope. Once I learned to accept myself, I learned who I really was.

I am very blessed and lucky to say that having a spinal cord injury has changed my life around. I loved walking and I am proud to say that I never took it for granted. I always thanked God for my legs when I used to run every day. Although, I cannot run now, I can do countless other things that I would not have otherwise tried if it were not for my injury. My wheelchair is my best friend, without it, I am lost – and stuck! My chair has taught me that I am more than just a body sitting in it, I am a being full of life, and I ought not to waste it. More than anything, being in a chair has been a gift.