Thank you to everyone who stopped for a few minutes and joined me in thinking about David! I hope you laughed and cried as hard as I did as you thought of the many ways David left his mark on this world and our lives.
David was not a quitter. No matter what curve ball was thrown at him he swung with all his might. When David lost his vision and could no longer ride his bike, he became Evel Knievel on the scooter. When he ran into a parked car with his scooter, he took up hiking Candy Lane with his white cane, stopping to talk with and encourage every person he literally ran into! Sure at times he griped and complained about how unfair life was and how he wished he could see, but when he was all done he embraced each of the gifts, blessings, and abilities God had given him and pursued life with a passion.
One of my favorite quotes from David is,
“I keep doing things I can’t; that’s how I get to do them.”
Our friend Donna Richards was David’s vision specialist. She was David’s champion. At times she was his teacher and at times he was her teacher. She helped David believe there was nothing he couldn’t do. All he had to do was keep doing it and what once seemed impossible became possible.
When learning Braille seemed impossible, he kept on trying and he learned to read Braille. When he was afraid to hike a mountain or ride a motorcycle or try white water rafting, he keep on doing the things that seemed impossible and he did them. Life is filled with tasks, responsibilities, and challenges that seem impossible. Sometimes we have the energy to keep pressing on, but often we feel like quitting. David would say, “Keep doing the thing you can’t; that’s how you get to do them.” When your school won’t provide the services your child needs, keep on pressing on. When your marriage seems crunchy or stale or broken, keep on doing the marriage thing and remind each other you are on the same team. David wasn’t the only one who would encourage you to keep pressing on:
“We would accomplish many more things if we did not think of them as impossible.” Vince Lombardi (GO PACKERS!)
“It always seems impossible until its done.” Nelson Mandela
“No one gets very far unless he accomplishes the impossible at least once a day.” Elbert Hubbard
I’m not sure what you are facing that you think is impossible today but I hope you take the words of a wise young man and keep doing it until it happens. Maybe you need to find a Donna in your life who can be your champion… someone who believes in you, someone who can be taught by you but you can also learn from them. Maybe it’s a family member, or someone in your church or synagogue, or an aid that “gets it.” Be bold and ask them, “Will you be my champion?”
Never give up! Fight the good fight! Don’t quit! You can do it.