Inspiration
Read time: 3 minutes
In his homily at Mass last Saturday night, Fr Joseph explained to us Mark’s Gospel, Chapter 7, verses 3-37, where Jesus healed the man who was deaf and blind. Fr Joseph spoke about Helen Keller and people with disabilities. In the prayers of the faithful we prayed for the disabled.
This immediately brought to mind for me all the amazing athletes participating in the Paris Paralympics.
The 17th Paralympic Games is an international sports event for athletes with a range of disabilities and this year took place in Paris from August 28th to September 8.
The Games are governed by the International Paralympic Committee, with 169 nations and 4463 athletes participating. There were 549 events in 22 different sports.
As I watched these spectacular events, I was in awe. I saw swimmers born with short arms and legs, or with completely missing limbs, breaking Canadian records and winning medals.
There was a blind athlete competing in long jump whose only indication of where he was supposed to jump was a shout from his guide, and he won a gold medal! I watched cyclists with various disabilities win medals and break records. I saw runners missing limbs or parts of limbs win medals. Then there were the amazing wheelchair races where records were broken and medals won.
I also watched an incredible armless archer, who, despite being born without arms, using his feet, won a gold medal.
It has been a privilege to watch these gifted, inspirational athletes.
Another great story concerned a former Humboldt hockey player who has switched from his lifelong dream of becoming a professional hockey player to his new lifelong dream of becoming a para rowing athlete at these games.
In the Gospels, Ephesians 2, we are told that we all have gifts and talents and should be using them for the benefit of the entire community, our service to the world.
The athletes participating in Paralympics are well aware of their gifts and talents and what service they can bring to the world. Some were born with their disability, others were older, and were disabled perhaps by illness or accident. Whatever and whenever their disability occurred, these athletes demonstrated to the entire world how to use their gifts and talents for the benefit of all.
These athletes are without exception joyful, humble and when interviewed, all spoke about “Being a privilege to be here, a privilege to represent my country, a privilege to be with friends and family, a privilege to be in Paris”
They have overcome unimaginable odds, not just surviving, but thriving and then becoming world champions.
One para athlete who exemplifies this for me lost all 4 limbs as a toddler and now at 20 years old, in these games, won a gold medal in the 50 metres backstroke. Her journey, like many others participating in these Paralympics has been marked by resilience and determination. This wasn’t just a personal victory, but a beacon of hope for the world and proof that, with enough determination, anything is possible.
Another powerful story belongs to a wheelchair racer, Cody Fournie. He won the men’s 100 metres in a record time of 19.63 seconds to become a double gold medalist (He also won the 200 metres) When he was 11 years old, crossing the road near his home, he was hit by a truck resulting in him becoming paraplegic. When speaking of his success in these Games, he said: “I attribute my success to my faith in Christ, my hard work in training and my team in Victoria. They have helped me tremendously to work on everything I needed to work on”
Every athlete in Paris had a story, a struggle and a moment of triumph or heartbreak that added to the tapestry of these unforgettable games. This was not just a competition. It was a celebration of the human spirit where every medal carried the weight of years of dedication and every loss was a lesson in resilience.
So last week when Fr Joseph asked us to think about disabilities and pray for the disabled, these are the people I thought of.
What an inspiration!