Christopher Reeve
The first thing that I heard this morning was that Christopher Reeve had died. The news of his death came unexpectedly, very much like the news of his spinal cord injury almost a decade ago.
I remember the interview that Reeve gave to Barbara Walters shortly after his injury. Paralyzed and confined to a chair, he revealed that he had contemplated the thought of pulling the plug on his respirator. He couldn’t believe how his life had been tragically altered. Somehow, he thought, there must have been a mistake; it was unfair, as this could not be his life.
Reeve’s words hit home with me, as I’m sure they did for millions of others. As much as we sometimes want to believe that life is fair, in reality it isn’t. Life isn’t fair, and perhaps it was never intended to be.
If Christopher Reeve had pulled the plug on his life, few could have blamed him. But to his credit, Reeve fought on, determined to face his daily challenges and to make the best of his situation. Not only did he find acceptance with his injury, but he found meaning in his in life as well. Reeve became a leading advocate for spinal cord injury research. He wrote books, raised money for various charities, continued to be a father and a husband, and testified before Congress on the urgent need for research funding.
Christopher Reeve is an inspiration for us all. While his tragic accident is a sobering reminder that life isn’t fair, his perseverance shows us that despite the unfairness of life, we should continue to strive to improve our own lives and the world as a whole. Christopher Reeve did just that.