Changing the World
What does it take to change the world? Years of experience? Access to a personal fortune? Two legs?
None of the above? Can you change the world by failing? Yes.
Terry Fox attempted to run across Canada on one leg and failed. (http://www.terryfoxrun.org/english/home/default.asp?s=1) He ended his run on September 1st 1980 when the cancer that claimed his right leg returned. He died a year later on June 28th 1981, one month short of his 23rd birthday.
Terry changed the world even though he failed in his attempt to cross the country. He changed the world and not just his part of the planet. Every year there are more than 50 countries with their own "Terry Fox Run."
If only we could all use someone like Terry as inspiration and do something positive.
5 comments:
That kind of inspiration is crap.
It would be interesting to know what sort of inspiration is not crap. What is the good inspiration?
No one who is sane tries to run across canada, especially when you only have one leg. What did he do that was so positive, so inspirational? How did this make the world a better place? He had cancer and survived (for a time). Why didn't he give talks on how he got through it? Instead he tried to run across Canada. He was probably bipolar.
He did give talks. He ran to draw attention to what cancer does to people.
His legacy is more than the $400 million that has been raised in his name. His legacy is also an awareness. He put a public face to cancer.
What I think is inspirational is that just doing something is better than doing nothing and sometimes the something might not have been the right thing. Maybe Terry had regrets after his cancer came back that he didn't just spend the last months when he was healthy touring the world or sitting on a beach instead of getting blisters and a sore stump and being tired, but his courage and hope gave millions others the hope and the courage to fight their disease or just give others a way of remembering loved ones who fell to its ravages and they feel better by donating so that maybe one day there will be a cure. And that is what Terry did that is such an inspiration to us Canadians.
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