Welcome
I've been in a wheelchair for twenty-one years. It's hard to believe it's been that long. It seems like only yesterday that I was driving an Armored Personnel Carrier down tank trails where I was stationed in the Army. As a teenager I was proud to serve my country. Even now as I am much older, I am still a proud veteran. There is great pride that comes from having been a part of that great fraternity that has served in the Armed Forces.
I joined the Army long before I graduated from high school. I didn't have any desire to go to college so my other two choices were to stay at home and get a job, which I already had or to join the Army. Joining the Army was fulfilling a childhood dream that I had, so that is what I did. Those first few days of basic training I wondered if I had made the right decision. It was definately culture shock to have someone yelling at you all the time and especially getting up before most roosters crowed. But, before long I settled into a routine and after awhile I started getting used to the yelling. I spent thirteen weeks at Ft. Leonard Wood in Missouri becoming a combat engineer and a soldier. I am amazed now when I think about how much I changed in thirteen short weeks. If I had to make the choice over again, I would do the same thing.
After basic training I was sent to Fort Stewart in Georgia. It was close to home and it gave me the opportunity to travel home every once in awhile. My job while at Fort Stewart was the driver of an Armored Personnel Carrier. It was a blast to drive and would plow through mud holes over my head and would push over trees like they were match sticks. I did both and I enjoyed every minute of it. I have so many great memories of things I did and people that were just like family. We spent so much time together you couldn't help but be close. Of course there are always some bad apples that will rub you the wrong way but for the most part, I liked everyone.
The Accident
I am proof positive that life can change in a blink of an eye. It happened in the early morning hours on a day I will never forget. The day was May 8, 1987 and it was around 4 a.m. in the morning. I had spent the night on guard duty and was traveling back to the guard house with five other men who had also spent the night pulling guard duty. We were tired, cold and sleepy and all of us would be off duty the next day. That is what was on my mind when the guy driving the car swerved to dodge a possum in the road and lost control of the car. When the car came to a stop I was lying with half my body in the car and half out. I could not move my arms or legs. I was awake but I remember very little. My roommate Brian, who was in the back seat, was the first to get to me and tried to make me comfortable.
I was in ICU for two weeks before being moved to a VA Hospital that had a spinal cord unit. It seemed like every conceivable x-ray and test that could be performed on a person was done on me. I was poked with needles by doctor after doctor to try and determine the extent of my paralysis and the level of my injury. That word paralysis took me back to a memory I had when I was in elementary school when I heard that a young girl named Lisa was paralyzed in a bus wreck in my town. I remember standing in my driveway thinking about her and wondering what it would be like to be paralyzed and not be able to move your arms or legs. Now I was living that nightmare and I knew exactly what it was like to not be able to move my arms and legs.
Adjusting To My New Life
Eddie, who was an employee at the VA hospital, came into my room to encourage me. Eddie was someone who knew all too well what I was going through. He too had experienced an accident that left him paralyzed. I will never forget him telling me that what was ahead of me was harder than basic training could ever think about being. Eddie was right.
I had been in a bed for more than four weeks and all I could think about was getting up in a wheelchair but before that could happen I had to have a halo put on my head. I was no angel and believe me after they put that torture device on me, I certainly was not an angel. I'm sure there are a slim few who will say they had one and it wasn't so bad, but mine was not correctly put on. I was wide awake when a team of doctors and nurses gathered around me. A metal ring was put around my head and four screws were screwed into my skull to hold the ring in place. I can honestly say my brain knows what a pimple feels like. They could at least knock you out to put this thing on.
After the pain of going through that I began to have a very bad sore place on the back of my head. I told my doctors but for two weeks they refused to do anything. They had no choice but to do something after one of my nurses was turning me in bed and rammed my head into the headboard causing the halo to move. The doctors came in the next morning and took one look and said, "This has to come off!" After two weeks of this torture device I would not consent for another one to be put on which is what they wanted to do. I opted for surgery instead.
After surgery to repair and stabilize the vertebrae in my neck, I began rehab. Eddie was right, rehabilitation was harder than basic training ever thought about being! My first day in the gym was a real eye opener for how hard this was going to be. My arms were so weak that I could barely lift pound and a half weights from my lap to my chest. It was very difficult seeing all the guys who were in the same shape that I was in, struggling to regain use of their arms and legs. Some were so angry because of their situations and I myself too had experienced many moments of anger.
In rehabilitation, I had to relearn basic things such as brushing my teeth, combing my hair and shaving. I also had to learn to dress myself. Having arms that were very weak, made these tasks very difficult. I was in the hospital for around eight months and that was what my days consisted of. I will say that I made a lot of good friends and had many wonderful people who helped me through the rehabilitation process.
Going Home
The next life-changing event in my life happened when I started going back to church. God started working on me as I would listen to His Word preached and taught Sunday after Sunday. It was hard for me to go back to church because I was embarrassed to be in a wheelchair. One night while laying in my bed I was very restless and it was like God was speaking to me, urging me to invite Him to be a part of my life. I had done this as a child and was baptized but there was no change in my life. But God was so convincing during this night that I began praying for the first time from my heart. I admitted to Him that I was lost and that I knew I needed forgiveness and I asked Him to forgive me and invited Him to come into my life. Boy did He answer that prayer! Almost instantly I had peace in my heart like I had never had and I also had joy. My circumstances had not changed, but my attitude and my outlook had! I can honestly say that my life changed that night for the better. Church was my second home and I began singing and going and sharing my story at other churches.
It was at one of these churches that I met a young lady who was very beautiful. I had no clue that she was interested in me but when I started going to her church, she soon let it be known that she liked me. Needless to say, we started dating and we never looked back! We dated for two years and after many trials through our courtship imposed on us by others who did not want us to be together, we decided to elope. After we eloped we took off for our honeymoon and when we came home our families came together and all was well. I will say that I have had the best in-laws and I think Dawn would say the same about my family.
Dawn and I have been together now for more than sixteen years. We have grown so close together that we truly are best friends. We are very active in our church singing and serving in different ways. The real difference in our lives has been our faith in Jesus Christ. He truly has been the glue that has put me back together and has held Dawn and I together in marriage.
The Difference
Sometimes we go through terrible things. Sometimes those things happen out of the blue, at the blink of an eye. When that happens we don't know really how to respond except to fall on our face before God and plead for Him to intervene. Sometimes He answers our prayers with the answer that we want and sometimes He answers those prayers with the answers that we don't want. It is my opinion that when God does not answer our prayers in the way that we want, we need to go on with our lives and learn from the experiences that we've been through. When I was going through those difficult days of not knowing what the future held for me I was angry, fearful and hurt. But somehow God brought me through and even as I look back on those bad times, I can see so much good that has come from the trials that I have went through. It has made me the Christian man that I am today. I've been very blessed with a wonderful life and if I could go back and change what I've been through, I would not do it. I can honestly say that I am thankful for having experienced what I have that is the good and the bad. So if you're reading this right now and you're going through a difficult time, don't give up and don't quit. Always try to see something positive in the difficulties you're going through and always remember that God has a plan for your life. God can bring good out of bad. He did it for me and He can do it for you if you just trust and believe. Thank you for reading my story! Curtis