Four morning’s a week, I participate in Paul Lacoste’s 12-week boot camp at Madison Central High School. It’s usually five or six sessions for an hour that work different parts of your body, depending on the day. Today we went into the weight room for one of those sessions and found big rubber bands hanging from the squat racks. We had never seen the rubber bands before.
We have a new coach, Neil who is a combination human dynamo and motivational quote generator. He had us doing shoulder and back exercises with the rubber bands. While didn’t initially seem like it would be tough, I am now sufficiently sore.
When it was my turn to do the rubber band, Ray, who I really respect as an athlete, said, “Sure is hard, isn’t it?” I blurted out, “Yeah, because I had that side of my back removed when I had cancer.”
He felt bad — which was not my purpose. Neil said that I was an inspiration because I was there. I’m not.
But I am there because I want to live. I have been given a second chance and I am taking care of my body.
I feel bad I even mentioned it. My scar isn’t a handicap. It’s a badge of honor. I’m proud of it and am stronger because of it. It’s not an excuse. It’s an opportunity.
The next time I do the rubber band, I’m going to work twice as hard at it. If I ever am an inspiration, it will be because what I do with my life. Not what happened to me.