In life it’s important to learn from the past. Some things happen that cannot be changed. You have to be adaptive and overcome the challenges that face you. If you can’t, you will never grow. Bad things happen to everyone, and they can be valuable life experiences.
My sophomore year of high school I was playing a varsity football game versus Bemidji. I was excited to have a great football season. I played defensive line and was also on some special teams. During the first quarter I went out on kick return and when the ball was kicked, I went to do my job and block. I was sprinting at the man I was supposed to block, and he was sprinting at me. We both knew we were going to collide with force. Just before impact I lowered my shoulder pads and braced for impact. Right after we hit, I planted my feet in the ground and prepared to block him away from our kick returner. Before I could make the block, my legs gave out underneath me. Before I knew what happened I was laying on the ground in pain. I didn’t know what happened, but I knew something wasn’t right. I was screaming in pain and my first thought was that I had broken my leg. I rolled on my back and tried to move my right leg. From what I could tell it was fine. I laid their knowing I wouldn’t be able to get up. Our head coach and a trainer came running and asked me what hurt. The trainer started tugging and twisting on my leg, while my coach told me to calm down. After a few minutes the helped me up. With my weight supported by them, I started to lightly walk. The first step on my right leg bowed out unnaturally. My knee burned with pain. I feared the worst.
When I got to the sideline, the teams trainer TJ told me I probably tore my ACL. This was the worst fear of any high school athlete. I had so many questions. I wondered if I could play football again. I wondered how long the recovery would be. I wondered if I would need surgery. Instead of asking these questions I laid on the trainer table, petrified. Several days later, after an MRI all of my questions were answered. I tore my ACL and LCL. I need arthroscopic reconstructive surgery. I will need to be on crutches for 8 weeks. I will need to do at least 5 months of physical therapy. I will not be able to wrestle in the winter or be in track in the spring. It would take 6 to 9 months before I’m back at 100%. All of this information was horrifying.
I got the surgery. It took me 10 weeks before I could walk unassisted. I went to physical therapy 3 times a week for 4 months. I missed the rest of football season, wresting, and track that year. I never appreciated being able to walk until I was unable to. Doing daily activities with essentially one leg was tough. One of the happiest moments of my life was 6 months after my surgery when I ran for the first time.
During my sophomore year of high school, I learned so much. I learned what it was like to push through pain. Every day at physical therapy I would push my withered leg to its limits. Over several months I turned a weakness back into a strength. Every rep, every exercise I did made it a little bit stronger. Besides the physical aspects of recovery, I gained mental toughness. I also learned how to appreciate the little things. Things that people do every day without a second thought. Without a positive attitude and gratitude, I would have never recovered. My injury taught me so many things, looking back, I’m thankful that it happened.
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