I love inspirational sports movies. No matter how cheesy, "For Love of the Game", "Warrior", "Miracle", "Goal", there is something about a feel good story that lights a fire inside me to accomplish something and take action now. "Rocky" and "Invincible" are my personal favorites. I love the idea of hardship struck with a never say die attitude. Perseverance with an optimistic motivation and focus conquers.
The other night a close friend shared a YouTube video with me ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8K9Gg164Bsw ). The perspective shared by Stella Young was something she hadn't heard before and wanted my take on it. I felt passionate enough about it to share my point with everybody.
I see her point, part of it at least. I agree that to deem somebody an inspiration just because they are struck with a disability is not an accurate conclusion to jump too. I agree that we have created an illusion that a disability is a bad thing and it makes you exceptional. It's not a bad thing and it doesn't automatically make you exceptional(however that doesn't mean you can't be exceptional). We shouldn't automatically patronize anybody as an inspiration for daily life and no true accomplishments. I agree there probably is several people that are deemed inspirational as a compliment to encourage their progress and an attempt to motivate them, or to create an illusion of inspiration to satisfy their own motivational needs.
This isn't what fired me up though. It was her take on "the only real disability is a bad attitude". She thought it was complete crap(I paraphrase to a better word). Her take was that it objectifies people with disabilities to find them inspirational. That is what I believe to be a load of crap.
I was told a story about a man who was to race an Ironman. The morning of he was waiting to start the race with his swim leg of it when adrenaline took a turn toward his nerves and doubt set in. He began to panic to his friends how he was not up to the task before him and must pull out. Until he saw two gentlemen pick up another competitor out of his wheelchair and carry him down to the water to begin the same race he was to compete in. He was suddenly struck with inspiration. In other words, his attitude shifted.
As most of you who really know me know that I believe attitude is everything in this world. It is the single greatest force that pulls us through. Anybody that suffers hardship, a disability, financial instability, emotion loss, and pulls through it to succeed above the odds are inspirational. and those that give up in a pessimistic fashion are disabled into a bad attitude that clasps to there ankle and weights them down to the bottom of the waters of despair.
The other day I sat in my chair at the bottom of our stairs...I didn't simply smile at them, I decided that one way or another I would drag myself to the top to see the loft in our house for the first time. My attitude is what pulled me through, if that causes someone else inspiration then God has used me. If my outlook an attitude despite odds inspires someone else to change their perspective, their attitude, then thank God. I will do great things, not because I'm disabled, but because of my attitude. If God has set that path to accomplish those through a disability then so be it. He has put others in front of me that have inspired me under similar circumstances, Darius Glover, Josh Dueck, Nick Scott, and many others(in fact I keep their YouTube stories in a playlist coincidentally titled Inspire).
In Matthew 5:1-12 it illustrates the beatitudes, a virtual attitude map to success. I think attitude is everything, part of having that proper attitude is constantly being inspired. I pray that God continues to find ways to inspire me and that he uses me to inspire others. Otherwise we are left with a bad attitude-a true disability.
