I don’t share this often, because oddly enough I sometimes forget what I started with, but I figure now might be a good time. Some people may know this about me, but certainly not all.
When I was born, it was by no means an expected process. By that I mean, I was a few weeks early. Every day, how my mom has told me, i’d have like a daily hiccup. One day, I didn’t.
My mom was rushed to the hospital, and they performed a C-Section. Out came a dead baby. Luckily, that baby was revived from the grave, and was then kept in the hospital for further testing. The following day, another episode hit, and this one basically screwed me up and I lost my kidney.
What I had, up until age 10, was called Wolff Parkinson White syndrome, which causes the heart to send misfired electrical signals and can cause the heart to beat up to 200 beats per minute. Until I was ten, I would have a occasional episode where my heart would race, and then i’d have to chill out (literally) and put a bag of frozen veggies on my forehead. It was stressful.
When I was 10, the doctors corrected the WPW with what is called a cardiac ablation, which results in a cutting off of the electrical signals. It was weird, put these cameras and wires into me and ZAPPED it.
Incidentally, when I was young, doctors felt my hand-eye coordination and attention span were low, so they prescribed me video games. I started with a SEGA Genesis. I started with TMNT, X-Men, Sonic, and Barney or all games. Later, I got the glorious N64, so on and so on. As if I have any hand-eye issues now!
Then the Scoliosis, then that was done. Wore a brace for 2 years during high school. That’s where I got my nickname that I use here.
I also used that for when I played NHL online with the EASports Hockey League. I was ranked #1 for save percentage among goalie players for 3 years in a row. Worldwide.
I rarely have issues, if any, with my heart. I’ll need an operation on my back at some point, probably in the next 5-10 years. I have occasional pain, but it’s nothing debilitating. You can hardly tell it’s crooked by looking at me, but it’s almost 60 degrees curved. That’s normally “pole in the back” territory.
I’ve spent my early teaching career trying to get students to stand up for what they believe in and to not forget where they come from. But I find that, personally, I hadn’t reflected on how far i’ve come until I looked at this thread and “complimenting myself”. I arguably shouldn’t even be here, yet I have students preparing themselves to present on their projects at the college I attended in about a month, all because I somehow inspired them to do it.
Their topics cover sexual assault, toxic masculinity, gender inequality...big time topics. It’s more of less what i’ve always wanted to do: be the change I want to see in the world. I doubted my actual impact one day. My co-teacher told me she felt I was changing the world, just one student at a time. It’s not just books we cover, but the ideas that we read, or get from the stories of the many different people of the world.
It seems all like nothing today. But I had a realization. Somehow, someway, i’m still here and still doing what I wanted. Do I wish I had more time to game? Certainly. But the stories I get the experience as it is have changed my life in ways i’ve never expected.
Who knows how many lives i’ve changed?
Basically, you’re here to do something amazing. At least, I think i’m here for that. Your outlook dictates the outcome, and you can’t lose sight of that.
Well, that and being kind to whoever you come across.
And doing the best you can, when you can. That’s something my grandmother, who was also an English teacher told me. She passed away this past summer. It was one of the hardest things to deal with in my life. But i’ve made it, and i’m still going.
You can’t give up, no matter what. Even if you still want to be a Super Mario, Legendary Hero, Phantom Thief at 26 years old like me, there’s always a need for someone like that.