Oh, the love of a great story! \u2026 even better when it\u2019s non-fiction.<\/p>\n
Note the ongoing tale of Shaquem Griffin, who college football fans know as the fastest linebacker in this year\u2019s draft class \u2014 and non-football fans will appreciate learning all in life he\u2019s overcome. And not just \u201covercome.\u201d He has amazingly surpassed and achieved.<\/p>\n
Note: Griffin has only one hand.<\/p>\n
Because of that one hand, people are tempted to see Griffin differently. Isn\u2019t that the truth? We see only singular traits in other people\u2026 a physical feature, an emotional bent, a political passion \u2014 and then we judge them on that. That becomes all we see\u2026 and it sadly affects all we think about them.<\/p>\n
For Griffin, what he\u2019s missing has the potential to affect more than what he offers and has.<\/p>\n
He recently wrote to NFL general managers as they consider his worthiness to be drafted. In his excellent, insightful, and sometimes fairly raw account, Griffin inspires and teaches us all\u2026<\/p>\n
\u201cNobody was\u00a0ever\u00a0going to tell me that I didn\u2019t belong on a football field. And nobody was ever going to tell me that I couldn\u2019t be great.<\/em><\/p>\n I rode that mentality all the way through high school. I got picked on because of my hand and I had guys trash-talk me and stuff like that, but most of the time, I just ignored it. On the football field, I got off to kind of a slow start adjusting to the high school game, but eventually I grew to be a leader and a team captain\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n I\u2019m not going to get into an explanation of the condition I was born with that prevented the fingers of my left hand from fully developing. Or talk about the time when I was four years old and I tried to cut my own fingers off with a kitchen knife because I was in constant pain. Or about when I got my left hand amputated shortly after. That\u2019s stuff you probably already know about anyway \u2014 and if you don\u2019t, you can Google it. The story is out there. And it\u2019s not some sob story or anything like that. It\u2019s not even a sad story \u2014 at least not to me. It\u2019s just \u2026 my story\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n In our backyard, we had a couple of stacks of cinder blocks with a stick across the top, like a hurdle. And when we would run routes, we would have to jump over the hurdle and do other obstacles mid-route. Then my dad would throw us the ball, and he\u2019d throw it hard, right at our chest. And every time we dropped it, he would say, \u2018Nothing comes easy\u2019\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n I don\u2019t define myself by my successes. I define myself by adversity, and how I\u2019ve persevered\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n I\u2019ve had people doubt me my whole life, and I know that there are a lot of kids out there with various deformities or birth defects or whatever labels people want to put on them, and they\u2019re going to be doubted, too. And I\u2019m convinced that God has put me on this earth for a reason, and that reason is to show people that it doesn\u2019t matter what anybody else says, because people are going to doubt you regardless. That\u2019s a fact of life for everybody, but especially for those with birth defects or other so-called disabilities.<\/em><\/p>\n The important thing is that you don\u2019t doubt yourself.<\/em><\/p>\n I feel like all the boys and girls out there with birth defects \u2026 we have our own little nation, and we\u2019ve got to support each other, because everybody in this world deserves to show what they can do without anybody telling them they can\u2019t.<\/em><\/p>\n I know there are some scouts and coaches \u2014 and even some of you GMs out there \u2014 who are probably doubting me, and that\u2019s O.K. I get it. I only have one hand, and because of that, there have always been people who have questioned whether or not I could play this game.<\/em><\/p>\n If you\u2019re one of those GMs who believes that I can play in the NFL, I just want to say thank you. I appreciate you, and I\u2019m excited for the opportunity to play for you and prove you right. And if one you\u2019re of those who is doubting me \u2026 well, I want to thank you, too. Because you\u2019re what keeps me motivated every day to work hard and play even harder. Back when I was eight years old, I played because I loved the game. I still do. But now, I also play because I believe it\u2019s my purpose. I know that it won\u2019t come easy. Nothing comes easy. But I will fulfill that purpose. I have no doubt.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n I\u2019m struck by Griffin\u2019s articulateness, poise, confidence and humility, and his clear recognition of both God\u2019s creation and his individual purpose.<\/p>\n So wise\u2026 and so good.<\/p>\n Respectfully\u2026 Oh, the love of a great story! \u2026 even better when it\u2019s non-fiction. Note the ongoing tale of Shaquem Griffin, who college football fans know as the fastest linebacker in this year\u2019s draft class \u2014 and non-football fans will appreciate learning all in life he\u2019s overcome. And not just \u201covercome.\u201d He has amazingly surpassed and … <\/p>\n
\nAR<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"