By Jessica Hickerson
Remember a time in which you were most jealous of someone. Maybe someone is dating the girl or the guy you like or getting an “A” in chemistry or is quarterback of the football team. Now imagine this scenario: you live your life in a wheelchair, paralyzed from the neck down. What are you jealous of now? Maybe that woman you saw who was able to stand up and walk across the room or that man who is able to eat and go to the bathroom by himself.
Christopher Reeve, famous for his portrayal of Superman in a collection of motion pictures, deals with those jealousies everyday. He cannot walk or stand. He cannot eat, bathe, dress, or go to the bathroom by himself. Reeve must breathe through a ventilator because he can’t even breathe on his own. Nevertheless, through all his devastations, he still remains courageous, hopeful, and determined to beat the odds.
ABC ran a special last Wednesday night entitled “Christopher Reeve: Courageous Steps,” which included interviews and home videos taken by Reeve’s son, Matthew. The interviews with Reeve himself tore at many heartstrings because you saw a man who was of great health become incurably debilitated within seconds. Tragedies like Reeve’s could happen to anyone. It’s a matter of being in the wrong place at the wrong time that could put an innocent person in a wheelchair.
The special was not meant to be depressing; it was meant to be a special of hope. Again, if you look at any interview with Christopher Reeve, one thing you can still see through his horrible disaster is the fire in his eyes. This man is showing the world that even seven years after the fact, he is not giving up, not throwing in the towel. In the special, he was assuring the world that he is a fighter and sending a message of hope to the countless Americans in a position similar to this.
The number of people who suffer from paralysis is terrifying. One can only imagine the pain and anguish these unfortunate souls go through each and every day. Yet somehow they continue to live on, to cope, and to fight, just like Christopher Reeve. After seven years, Reeve is finally able to move his hand, and although it may seem such a small accomplishment to many, for him it is a huge step towards his recuperation.
Christopher Reeve did mention in “Courageous Steps” that often, people do refer to him as Superman because of his courage and his strength to overcome a horrible condition. To me, that fits Reeve’s description perfectly. Superman was a role model of determination and strength, and if there was ever an actor that most identified with his character, it would have to be Reeve.
This year Reeve will turn 50 years old, and the plan is that for his fiftieth birthday, the ventilator will be removed, and for the first time in seven years, he will be able to breathe on his own. There’s so much we all take for granted. I believe if we all spent one day in the life of anyone like Christopher Reeve, our whole outlook on life would change forever.
A life such as Reeve’s makes being jealous of the guy with the A in chemistry or the quarterback of the football team seem entirely trivial. Be grateful for what you have been blessed with in life, because in the blink of an eye or the neigh of a horse, it could all be taken away.
