2. Epigraph
“When you're playing against a stacked deck, compete even harder.
Show the world how much you'll fight for the winners circle.
If you do, someday the cellophane will crackle off a fresh pack,
one that belongs to you, and the cards will be stacked in your favor.(Great
Quotes).”
-Pat Riley
(former basketball great)

3. OVERVIEW
• How I dealt with the loss of mobility.
• The great feeling of being on top of the world to the moment of
not knowing what the future holds.
• The events that lead to my position shift has shown people that
there is hope in life; no matter what is thrown in front you.
• How my life was changed since the position shift.

5. THE BEGINNING AND THE START OF SHIFT
• Before my shift I thought I was invincible. I could throw the football
around, eat tacos, drive and lift weights.
• I had great mobility. I could set myself up in a four point stance and could
shoot for a double take down on the wrestling mat.
• I could even chop some celery with one hand and hold the end of the celery
with the other.
• The world was my proving ground.
Then it all changed!
 The Shift starts on a morning in October on a football field in
Middletown, Ohio. The sun is bright and the fans are cheering.
 Game starts and I get blindsided by a very large man and end up breaking
my humerus.
 I have lost the mobility of my arm and it is something that I would not wish
on my greatest enemy.

6. The image of a man being blindsided, the
pain that he feels is what I went through
everyday for 3 months. You don’t forget
the event. Each day you are reminded
that it be a scar or a just a lasting memory.

7. THE SCAR THAT IS STUCK IN MY MIND
This is what my arm looked like after I
got blindsided. I have a picture of my x-
ray in my room and at my high school
in the trainers office. This picture
reminds me of the struggles I had to go
through during my injury and is also a
symbol of pride because I overcame
adversity.

8. SHIFT CONTINUED…
• I can no longer carry things around the house with two hands.
• I can’t even take a shower like I usually do anymore. Do you have any
idea how uncomfortable it is to shower when there is someone there
helping you; because you can’t wash your body by yourself?
• After the Shift
• I have seen the world from a different perspective. I am thankful for
everything I have. Especially the mobility of two arms because only
having one sucks.
• I understand how hard it is to do things with one hand and how I can
make the negative into a positive. I learned new strategies that I will use
in life.
• I no longer worry about the small stuff and am thankful every day for the
gift that God has given to me a fully functioning body.

9. COMMUNICATING MY SHIFT TO OTHERS
• I had communicated my shift to many people I started with
communicating my shift to my family.
• I had to wear a brace on my arm for three months and each time I saw
one of my family members I would explain to them what happened and
would always stay positive.
• My parents were a huge part of my shift because they were there every
moment of my recovery from those nights of intense pain to the strides
that I made towards recovery.

10. NON VERBAL COMMUNICATION
• My family was one of the groups that I explained my shift to but there
were other ways I communicated my shift.
• I wore a brace as stated above and people would see the pain that I was
going through but every step of the way I stayed positive and people
would give me looks of encouragement.
• I loved knowing that I did not have to explain what happened to my arm
people just realized that I took a negative situation and made it positive.
• A simple smile from a person I did not know or a simple get better made
me feel loved and made my shift easier for me.

11. Here is an image of the
brace that I wore for three
months. It was a major part
of showing my shift. People
would ask how I was
dealing with my injury and
my response was that
things happen for a reason
and that this experience
has made me stronger.

12. FOOTBALL FAMILY
• There was a group of people who were there with me each step of my
journey and that was my football family.
• I would not of been able to make it through this period in my life without
my teammates.
• My teammates understood my shift and respect me for what I went
through. The guys on the team are part of my family and I thank them at
every chance I get.
• I also extended my shift to people on other teams they would ask what
happened and I would tell them.
• I took a situation where a person could of shut down and made the
situation a positive and in turn helped other people cope with their
injuries.

13. REFLECTION
• I have told many people about my shift that you can not take anything
for granted.
• The people I have talked to about my shift thing it is admirable, they
were impressed by the way that I looked adversity in the face and came
out on top.
• I hope that I have impacted my friends lives as much as they have
impacted mine.
• All of my friends responses were positive which gave me hope, I live my
life now with a the feeling that I am no longer invincible.

14. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Great Quotes: -Pat Riley
"Greatest Inspirational Football Quotes." Greatest Inspirational Football
Quotes. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Sept. 2012. http://www.greatest-inspirational-
quotes.com/inspirational-football-quotes.html