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It's been awhile since I last shared my thoughts through this journal. I feel compelled though and hope my inspiration to write continues. The picture I posted above was a birthday gift for a very dear friend of mine-Tara Llanes. It's a collage of both she and I in our former respective sports; Motocross and Downhill Mountain biking, with reflections of our life changing injuries and a banner that says- "It's Natural". I wrote it's natural on the picture because of a subtle, kindred spirit we share and how we came to be in each others lives. Prior to our spinal cord injuries we traveled very similar paths; confident, courageous athletes chasing checkered flags, living without boundaries, far beyond the typical and way outside the box. I suppose this is the subtle, underlying commonality to our friendship and the basis for which we both now lead our lives living with a spinal cord injury. Although Tara has been injured for a little over one year, she is fighting and struggling, making tremendous progress through a tumultuous process. I know and understand this process well and continue to struggle with its teachings even now nine years later. For me, Tara's friendship is a beacon of light, shining bright on a fog filled day, reflecting life's true essence with a radiant smile and bravely breaking through to anew, each and every day.
This entry is on the heals of a very thankful Thanksgiving Holiday and I am no more thankful for my family than I am for my friendships with like minds and like spirits, sharing each others greatest gifts of - Time & Love. -Aaron
Visit Tara's websites @
http://www.tarasroadtorecovery.com/
http://www.tarallanesracing.com/
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12-14-08
Ironman! That’s exactly what my good friend Ricky James is...An Ironman! A few years ago Ricky was an up and coming motocross phoneme, winning hundreds of amateur races and setting himself for a career in professional motocross racing. The budding young star however suffered a devastating injury which left him a paraplegic, paralyzed from the chest down. I am fortunate to have been contacted by his father Rick and his remarkable family in their pursuit to optimize Ricky’s recovery. Ricky and I immediately struck a friendship with the common ground of motocross and a mutual respect for our greatest passion...Racing! I’ve had the privilege of sharing in Ricky’s amazing process of healing by reflecting his strength and desire to overcome his adversity. He has continued to shock and amaze people with his tremendous tenacity and self proclaimed philosophy of Perseverance. 2008 was a year to remember for Ricky James. He has set and achieved more in this past year than anyone I personally know, injured or not. Seriously, I cannot begin to list all that he has accomplished only because i would most likely leave something out. I will say though, Ricky is my greatest competition and a source of immense inspiration. He sets the bar high for me to strive for. I deeply admire his will to be his best, at whatever he does. His youthful exuberance is contagious and he always lights a room where ever he goes. I’m proud of you Ricky, you’ve come a long way dude.
Watch this video: www.youtube.com/watch
Visit: www.rickyjames824.com |
12-05-08
What I really mean is..."Sh#@ Happens!" It does and all I can do is, Get on with it. I'm actually really happy and pretty surprised that this type of injury didn't happen over the summer when I was putting my body through far more stressful riding conditions. The fact is, when I did this to myself, I didn't even know it happened until the next day and even then I dismissed the slight discomfort as muscle tone and spastisity. Well, that was exactly one week ago and even though I've been resting, icing and addressing the area as an injury, it is more painful right now than it has ever been. The real problem is not the inability to ride my bike but rather the affect it has on my regular activities of daily living. It's a vicious cycle that when I stop doing what I do, my body begins to systematically break down...Fast! For example: Cardiovascular exercise i.e. cycling, NuStepping and arm cycling stimulates my appetite. No appetite...No fitness training. No fitness training...Decreased synchronicity. Decreased synchronicity...Leads to decreased functional movements ultimately rendering me well, frustrated! No worries though, it's during these times that demonstrate for me how far my body has come over the last nine years. To strain my adductor muscle while hauling ass on a bicycle makes me smile and thankful for the ability to hurt myself in such a good way...Ha-ha! So here's to the benefits of ice, an old friend that keeps good company. I'll be chillen out over the weekend. Enjoy. -Aaron
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12-02-08
"Do Work Son!"...Ha-ha! That was a pretty common saying last year made popular by an MTV reality show called "Rob & Big", I liked it and so it stuck, and well, that's exactly what I've been doing and continue to do on a daily basis.
A long time ago Taylor Isaacs, my (clinical exercise physiologist) instilled in me that the most important part of my recovery process is...Me! No gym or piece of equipment, no doctor, or clinitian can do anything for me until I choose it to be. It starts with "Willingness" not motivation. Sure, at times I bring the motivation and Taylor the clinical professional brings the education and together we make a team that yield favorable results. However, motivation is fleeting and for me not that consistent, so, what I mean by willingness is- To be willing to go through the process... To accept to a degree, the reality in mind and the reality in present and choose to continue forward through difficulty, through the pain, to recognize suffering as temporary and celebrate the fact that what doesn't kill you, truly does make you stronger. So for this entry, I posted an image of me in my home office, answering calls, sending text messages and working through the stiffness, the spasticity, and the lack of motivation, willing myself to... Move, Change and Grow- and now looking back on today, I am happy.
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12-01-08
I remember a few years ago when I first began writing my thoughts, it was with the purpose of sharing my process of recovery and my daily activities while living with a spinal cord injury. Well, for the first year I was diligent with my posts and quite excited about the creative writing that flowed freely from my thoughts. Needless to say over time my writing fell dormant, as did my imagination for producing anything worth reading. I will tell you now though, much has happened for me and my family over the past years and I feel a welling up of story for me to reflect and share. Those who know me best know that I have a propensity for forward momentum, and so the following entries will be an amalgamation of poignant moments from both past and present with the intention of illustrating the immense progression which has, and continues to occur in my quest for discovering my personal potential. May this entry find you "the reader" well, and may your day be exactly what you imagine~
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