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Tragedy—a hero falls In May of 1995, it was during the cross-country portion of a show jumping event in Culpeper, Virginia, that Reeve's horse, Eastern Express, balked at a rail jump, pitching his rider forward. Reeve's hands were tangled in the horse's bridle and he landed head first, fracturing the uppermost vertebrae in his spine. Reeve was instantly paralyzed from the neck down and unable to breathe. Prompt medical attention saved his life and delicate surgery literally reattached Reeve's head to his spine. Upon regaining consciousness and realizing the gravity of his situation, Reeve wondered to his wife Dana if "maybe we should just let me go." Whereupon Dana uttered the words that gave him the will to live: "But you're still you and I love you."
When Ure Hero Falls when your hero falls from graceall fairy tales r uncoveredmyths exposed and pain magnifiedthe greatest pain discoveredu taught me 2 be strongbut im confused 2 c u so weaku said never 2 give upand it hurts 2 c u welcome defeatwhen ure hero falls so do the starsand so does the perception of tomorrowwithout my hero there is onlyme alone 2 deal with my sorrowyour heart ceases 2 workand your soul is not happy at allwhat r u expected 2 dowhen ure only hero falls --TupacShakur
Vocabulary access affliction logistics the ability to enter somewhere or to talk to someone a condition of pain and suffering rehabilitation sever the organization and management of the details of a complex project the process of restoring to health through therapy to cut apart, or cut off completely
HERO……… It can mean different things to different people. The following is what it meant to the author of our first autobiographical excerpt, Still Me, Christopher Reeve.
“When the first Superman movie came out I was frequently asked 'What is a hero?' I remember the glib response I repeated so many times. My answer was that a hero is someone who commits a courageous action without considering the consequences--a soldier who crawls out of a foxhole to drag an injured buddy to safety. And I also meant individuals who are slightly larger than life: Houdini and Lindbergh, John Wayne, JFK, and Joe DiMaggio. Now my definition is completely different. I think a hero is an ordinary individual who finds strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles: a fifteen-year-old boy who landed on his head while wrestling with his brother, leaving him barely able to swallow or speak; Travis Roy, paralyzed in the first thirty seconds of a hockey game in his freshman year at college. These are real heroes, and so are the families and friends who have stood by them.“ Christopher Reeve, September 25, 1952 - October 10, 2004
