All About Perspective

What exactly IS perspective, anyway?

Last week, at least for a short time, I thought my whole world had come crashing down. The one thing I thought I was good at – talking sports to you guys – had been taken away. For a few hours, I felt like the most alone person in the world (I wanted to tell my wife about getting let go first, but she was on an airplane, so I had to sit on the news for a couple of hours), and wallowed in some good ole’ fashioned self-pity.

Shame on me.

Today, with more time on my hands than I care to admit, I went to the $2 budget theatre on Highway 100 across from Wal-Mart over in Greenfield. I had heard about the film “Soul Surfer” but did not have the chance to see it when it until today. I was familiar with the story of Bethany Hamilton, the Hawaiian teenage surfing sensation who had survived losing her arm in a shark attack back in October, 2003.

At the time Bethany was attacked, she was considered one of the best up-and-coming junior surfers in the world. That she persevered through losing her left arm and not only survived, but again became a champion surfer is beyond inspirational.

Never allowing herself to wallow in self-pity, even after losing her arm Bethany gave back to the world, traveling to the tsunami-ravaged region in Phukut, Thailand after the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake. It was there that Bethany saw those far worse off than she.

My point is that no matter how rough any of us have it, there is always someone there to snap us back to the reality that there will be a tomorrow. As Satchel Paige once said: “Don’t look back, something may gaining on you.”

Today, Bethany is still surfing, although she just suffered a rather serious injury to her right bicep. Something tells me that if a shark ripping off her left arm can’t stop her, this injury certainly won’t!