Leave it to an elementary school field day to bring us the most
inspiring video of the week.
The young man who refuses to be beaten by his own limitations in the video above is Matt W. (last name unknown), attends an a local elementary school in my town called Colonial Hills. Like most elementary schools in America, Colonial Hills has a once-a-year track and field day, and like most kids, Matt was clearly eager to take part.
However, unlike most of his peers, Matt suffers from spastic cerebral palsy, a debilitating condition that limits his ability to undergo rigorous physical exercise of any kind. Incredibly, despite knowing those limitations, Matt decided that he would run the 400-meter event (1/4 mile).
The result was absolutely inspiring. While all the other students in the event finished far in front of Matt, the student athlete simply refused to stop running, chugging his way around the track on his own, even as it appeared he might collapse.
Naturally, the inspirational Colonial Hills student needed plenty of encouragement, and he first got that from the school's gym teacher, John Blaine, who trotted up alongside his pupil and walked and then ran alongside him for the remainder of the race.
Then, after all the other fifth- and sixth-graders in the race had finished, they joined in, running over to follow Matt around the track and chanting encouragement until he finished. Matt then hugged his gym teacher and accepted a series of high fives from fellow students, all while his mother watched on, sobbing with emotion from the kindness shown to her son.
It's an inspiring video that shows the power of positive thinking and what people can accomplish with a little encouragement and it's a great lesson for us to remember when obstacles are in the way of what our team needs to accomplish. Never Give Up!