Tuesday, I left McGuinn Hall inspired. Worries about assignments, tests, and activities receded to mere tasks waiting to be completed. Listening to motivational speaker Travis Roy tell us his story about the fatal 11 seconds that shattered his dreams and how he was able to overcome his paralysis was inspiring, to say the least.
Travis, who had begun playing hockey when he was just 20 months old, stepped onto BU's hockey rink with the intent of playing his first college hockey game. It only took 11 seconds on the ice for the freshman to lose his balance and crack his fourth vertebra into the boards, leaving him paralyzed. That fateful night in October of 1995 seemed like the death of a dream and a promise.
What would you have done? There is something to be said about a 17-year-old who could undergo such a traumatic and life-changing episode, return to school, and decide to turn this negative occurrence into something that makes a difference.
Since then, Travis has started the Travis Roy Foundation dedicated to spinal-cord-injury survivors and research. "People with positive attitudes," he said, "are more apt to see the opportunities in front of them." It would have been too easy for Roy to only become a stark tribute in an old newspaper long forgotten, but his positive attitude and courage have helped him not only to empower himself, but also translate his story into a beacon of hope for anyone who has felt obstacles in their way.
It gets hard at times to fight off the urge to complain. Clearly falling on the unfavorable end of the housing lottery has to be the end of the world, and writing those three papers and studying for the midterm is the bane of existence. These are feelings that happen naturally as a product of the college environment and are not to be completely discounted. But is it really productive and appropriate for us to keep one-upping each other with stories of our "troubles"? A story like Travis Roy's reveals these statements for what they really are - complaints we could do without.
2008 Woodie Awards
