They said he'd spend his life as a "Vegetable"...

By Clifford Mee

Imagine if you had a child who was diagnosed with cerebral palsy at birth.

Imagine if he could not walk, speak, or do much of anything.

And imagine if doctors told you that he was going to be a "vegetable" them rest of his life, that you were better off putting him in an institution.

What would you do?

Dick Hoyt was faced with this exact same situation when his son Rick was born with the umbilical cord wrapped around his neck.

But rather than listen to all the doctors, Dick and his wife decided to treat Rick like a regular child.

Soon they discovered that Rick was actually quite intelligent. He learned his alphabet. And he even learned to communicate with a special computer.

But what is probably most amazing is that Dick began to run. And when he ran, he took his son Rick with him.

After that first run, Rick told his dad, "Dad, when I'm running, it feels like I'm not handicapped."

This was the beginning of a special bond between Dick and Rick. They began to do marathons and triathlons together.

Dick pushes Rick while he runs, pulls him while he swims, and carries him on a special bicycle when he bikes.

As of February 2008, Dick and Rick Hoyt had competed in 958 endurance events, including 65 marathons and six Ironman triathlons.

They've literally inspired the world. (Their YouTube videos have been watched MILLIONS of times.)

Now, most of us don't face anywhere near the challenges that Dick and Rick have faced in life.

We can walk. We can talk. We can do pretty much whatever we want.

And yet, at the same time, most of us are just floating through life, settling for mediocrity.

We're letting little things get in our way.

Isn't it time you stopped settling for an average life... and began to unleash your full potential?

Be all you can be!

Books:


Be All You Can Be: A Challenge to Stretch Your God-Given Potential


Be The Best You Can Be