TRANSFORMING TRAGEDIES
Joni Eareckson Tada lived a very active life all through her growing-up years, enjoying riding horses, hiking, tennis, and swimming.
However, in 1967 Joni dived into Chesapeake Bay not realising how shallow it was. Tragically she was paralysed from her shoulders down. She was only 17 years old…
During her two years of rehabilitation, according to her autobiography Joni, she experienced anger, depression, suicidal thoughts, and religious doubts. However, during occupational therapy, she learned to paint with a brush between her teeth and began selling her artwork. She also writes this way, although for most writing tasks she relies on voice recognition software. To date, she has written over forty books, recorded several musical albums, and starred in an autobiographical movie of her life, and is an advocate for people with disabilities.
Joni wrote of her experiences in her 1976 international best-selling autobiography, Joni: The unforgettable story of a young woman's struggle against quadriplegia & depression, which has been distributed in many languages. The book was made into a 1980 feature film of the same name, starring herself. Her second book, A Step Further, was released in 1978.
Joni was able to transform a life event that was devastating….
A friend of mine transformed the tragedy of loosing her husband in a home invasion by starting a swim-school for underprivileged children.
The MOTH (Men of the Tin Hats) movement in South Africa was started by returning soldiers from WWII. It served as a social event that included the spouses of the soldiers and became a therapeutic process as they shared their stories with each other.
WALT DISNEY wanted to create a new type of light entertainment however, he experienced some crushing failures and early on in his career and soon found himself virtually homeless, sleeping in his office (where he befriended a tame mouse) and taking showers at the train station. Just a year after opening his doors, he was forced to declare bankruptcy.
However, he did not let the setback knock him down. He spent his last dollars on a bus ticket, headed out to Hollywood and started the company that bears his name. The little mouse that he befriended became the inspiration for the cartoon character Mickey Mouse..
We dare not allow tragedy to discolour our lives, however, it requires courage, the wisdom to recognise our ‘normal’ pain/grieving reaction, and to remember the words of Jesus that I hold onto often… “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome this world.” (John 16:33)
