A Reminder

Running the risk of loosing "guy" points, I must admit that I am not a big ESPN watcher. I know for some it is the only channel that the satellite receives. My oldest son is one of those people. A couple of night ago I came in and he, of course, had it on ESPN and was watching The Espys. This is an awards show where ESPN recognizes the folks that help make their network worthwhile. I came in about the time they were announcing the Jimmy V. Award. This is given to an athlete that overcomes adversity. This years winner is Anthony Robles, who won the NCAA wrestling title this year in his weight class. To me what sets Anthony apart is not that he is a National Champion wrestler, but that he did it with a no-matter-what attitude. He was born with only one leg. And to hear part of his story, that was just one of the many obstacles that he overcame or over looked.
Just this brief exposure to this young man and only hearing a condensed version of his story has caused me to think about a few things. The main thing is how often I seem to use the phrase "I can't". Not saying it out loud, but to myself. Convincing myself that something is impossible or that I am not able to accomplish the task. It is not a loud booming "I can't"; most of the time it is just a soft whisper. Those are debilitating words and can cause me to give up or stop short. However, when I have a reminder like the one from Anthony Robles, I think about what I heard many hears ago from a radio preacher. Some of the best words that God like to hear is when we say "I can't", because He can. I throw so many excuse up from being too fat, not getting enough rest, bad knees, bad shoulder, my ancestors acting up and garments on my back. And that is just for the physical challenges. The mental/spiritual challenges are a whole other story. A whole other story with the same moral: Obstacles are just that obstacles. Even in golf you get to move your ball when the hazard is bad enough.
Here is this young man's acceptance speech. As you watch it and hear a little bit about his story and how he accomplished what most would say is impossible; let it be a reminder that obstacles should only be a hindrance. Even with imperfections, such as missing body parts our goals and dreams can be reached and realized.

Robles Acceptance Speech at ESPY Awards (Jimmy V Award) from Keith Jennings on Vimeo.