Sometimes Where You Start is Where You Belong

On Tuesday evening I received a great piece of advice from my teammate Bryan Kirkland, two-time Paralympic gold medalist and world record holder, “most of the time there isn't one right thing to do. Usually there is 10 things you can do it's just a matter of figuring out what works.” He was discussing wheelchair rugby but I believe it can be applied to almost anything in life.

That is also how I feel about my writing. Please take what you want to take from my writing and figure out how to improve your life and chase your dreams. If I had only one piece of advice it would be go with your gut no matter what! I believe our gut or internal voice is the force that binds us all together. I beg you to not get caught up in the label of that force just remember we are all in this together.

I'm still not sure why the idea I just shared and a story from six years ago match up but I've learned enough to know you don't question the big man upstairs when he gives you an idea.

Living in Weston Hall Room 125 were the best two years of my life to that point. I made a lifelong brotherhood with Dave and Adam. As well as surround myself with countless friends during the freshman and sophomore years of college. Even though I thoroughly enjoyed my time at Weston I figured that junior year I “should get an apartment” because that is what “juniors do”.

I started my apartment search early in my sophomore year where my first stop was to talk to a lady who worked at the University to help people find housing. It is a fact of life that accessible housing is sparser so my options were limited to begin with. Soon the lady who worked for the University told me that many of my options needed to be eliminated because she did not like the management. My best option was to take over the lease from my friends Gretchen and Nate. It was a great apartment but it was all the way on the other side of campus from all my classes and activities in a town named Urbana.

I thought "That's okay". I can just buy a used car. I'm going to be a junior in college “I should do that.” I have driving limitations that I recognize to this day. Back when I was 20 I lived in a life full of fear and doubt so I manifested a fender bender that was all my fault within 48 hours of getting my new used-car.

This resulted in me making the decision that I was not going to use the car for the rest of the year. Pushing my wheelchair became the primary mode of transportation. I was in good shape when I started my fifth semester of undergrad however by the end of the semester I was in great shape because a full round trip between my apartment and furthest class measured just under 2 1/2 miles. By the end of the semester I was one tired puppy both physically and mentally and when the snow hit I wanted out of Urbana and back into the warm comfort of Champaign.

I contacted the housing division at the University and they said I was more than welcome to move back into the dorms, but there was only one room that fit what I needed: Weston 125. The student who had lived in my room for one semester wanted to switch locations because he did not like the childlike behavior of some of his floor mates. At that point I didn't care if someone told me I had the social skills of a kindergartner. I was moving back to become neighbors with my friend Tony!

If I would've gone with my gut I would've lived in Weston my entire junior year but instead I let conventional wisdom take over my brain. Occasionally conventional wisdom is correct but I prefer individual wisdom. Information you come up with in your own head.

We are all blessed with one life to live so no matter what go with your gut!

Thanks for reading
Chris