The story of American father and disabled son

The story goes back to 1962. Rick was born like an ordinary baby in a hospital in Mastown, Wisconsin, USA. Unfortunately, in the process of his mother's delivery, Rick suffered severe brain damage due to umbilical cord entanglement and brain hypoxia, and he was unable to control his body movements since he was a child. When the child was 8 months old, the doctor told Dick to give up, because his son was destined to be a vegetable all his life, which didn't make much sense. All this made Dick and his wife unacceptable, but the stubborn Dick did not choose to give up.

Dick recalled that at the moment when the doctor advised me to give up, I saw Rick's eyes wandering around the room and finally staying on me. His eyes are full of a strong desire for life. From that moment on, I decided to support and educate him with my wife. In just five years, Dick and his wife brought Rick two younger brothers. The couple love Rick best, and they firmly believe that Rick's IQ is the same as his two younger brothers. When Rick was seven or eight years old, Dick and his wife began to think about letting Rick go to school like an ordinary person.

Difficult admission

Rick is destined to be difficult to get along with. He can't speak because of brain damage. The headmaster of the school told Dick that if children can't talk, they can't communicate and can't understand. There must be nothing in his heart. So he can't be admitted to the school.

Dick insisted that traditional prejudice should not be an obstacle to children's education, because a lot of observation and practice told him that although part of his son's brain was damaged and he could not talk and walk, it was far from the whole brain. Dick and his wife began to try to teach Rick some of the simplest letters.

When Rick 1 1 years old, Dick found a group of experts at Tufts University and solved Rick's communication problem. The expert asked Dick to do an experiment to find evidence that Rick had the possibility of understanding and communication. Dick agreed happily, because he knew the child and believed that the child could pass the test.

An expert told a joke in the experiment, and Rick actually showed a happy smile on his face. The experts were very excited and spent more than 5,000 dollars to build an interactive computer. This kind of computer allows Rick to write his own ideas. As long as he makes a slight head movement, such as nodding his head, a series of red letters will appear on the computer indicator. Rick can choose the letter he wants, then touch the switch with his head, and the computer can lock the letter. Several letters are linked together to convey what Rick wants to express.

Many people think that Rick's first words may be "Hello, Dad" or "Hello, Mom". But Rick's first words were to see the Boston Bears (the Boston Bears reached the finals of the American Hockey League).

This made everyone very excited because they saw Rick's inner world for the first time. He loves sports.

Strange running

With communication equipment, Rick finally entered school at the age of 13. Two years later, Rick told his father that he wanted to take part in a five-mile charity run for an athlete disabled by a car accident. Dick agreed. Although he is not a long-distance runner, he pushed his son's wheelchair to finish the whole race. Their ranking is the second from the bottom, but it doesn't affect Dick's mood, because Rick's face is full of happiness. Rick told Dick through the com that he didn't feel disabled at all during the long-distance running.

This sentence completely changed Dick's life. He felt that he should fight for the normalization of his disabled son all his life. He decided to use more similar happy experiences to change Rick's life, and further used his son's example to encourage more disabled people to participate in activities that they had no chance to participate in in the past. He even offered to take part in the famous Boston Marathon with Rick.

The Boston Marathon Organizing Committee flatly rejected Dick's request. For the organizing Committee, it is impossible for two people to participate in the special way of pushing and running. But Dick didn't give up. He chose this goal and must achieve it. He took Rick, pushed Rick's wheelchair (Rick himself tried to push the wheel by hand), and kept practicing long-distance running in other races he could participate in. Rick told reporters through the interactive computer that at first, all people had never seen such a thing, and they didn't believe Dick would push Rick hard. Nobody wants to talk to them.

But then many athletes started talking to Rick. An athlete named Pete Wisnuski even became friends with Rick. In every long-distance race, Rick made a bet with Pete that whoever lost would hang the winner's number in his room to motivate himself to surpass each other next time. Later, in addition to Pete, more and more athletes will greet Rick before the game and wish him good luck. 1983, Dick and Rick's efforts finally paid off, and they qualified for the Boston Marathon. Ranked second from the bottom. Rick also got unprecedented happiness from it.

After taking part in the marathon for four years, Dick began to lead Rick in the triathlon. This is undoubtedly a bigger challenge for Dick. To this end, he had to insist on intensive training for five hours after work four times a week. For Rick, triathlon is almost an impossible task. Rick recalled that although I was just sitting on a small sampan, I had to learn some basic skills. Learning to swim at first is like sinking into the sea, and my limbs are weak. Later, with the help and encouragement of my father, I learned a little. Learning to ride a bike is more risky, so I decided to sit in the back seat of my father's car, or simply sit in a wheelchair and let my father pull me along.

Dick recalled, "All these difficulties failed to stop Rick. I will continue to inspire him and he will comfort me. " 1985 On Father's Day, Dick took Rick, who weighed 1 10 Jin, to participate in the triathlon for the first time, and finally ranked second from the bottom. Many people advised Dick to give up. But Dick thought it was the best Father's Day gift from his son, and he said that he would continue to take Rick to participate in this sport. Dick said, I have decided one thing, and I will definitely carry it out. My son is my best motivation.

From 1985 to now, Dick has led Rick to participate in eight triathlons, including the famous Hawaii 15-hour "Devil Iron Man" event. Their indomitable spirit is recognized by more and more athletes. Every time those athletes pass Rick, they will cheer loudly. Come on, don't give up. Others encouraged Rick to say, we are here to see you. All this touched Dick and his son. Dick said that all we have to do is tell those disabled people how to face their difficulties and how to overcome them.

Perfect research

With the help of his father, Rick not only achieved great success in overcoming the difficulties in sports, but also achieved excellent results in his studies. After graduating from high school, he miraculously entered the special education department of Boston University with excellent results. 1993, Rick graduated from this school with a bachelor's degree. That year, Rick and his father participated in the Boston Marathon as special guests. Rick recalled excitedly that all the Bostonians we saw along the way wished my father and me good luck. Many people still hold signs that say, "Congratulations on Rick's graduation from college." Since then, they have been participating in the competition under the name of "Dick Rick Huo Yite United", and "Huo Yite United" has become the pride of the disabled and normal people.

In the 1992 Boston Marathon, the father and son achieved the best result in their marathon history-2 hours and 40 minutes. Although there is still a gap of 35 minutes from the world record, the significance goes far beyond the game itself. Dick, 65, pushed his 44-year-old son in the Boston Marathon on April 19, 2007, ranking 5083 among 20,000 runners. Many viewers shed tears. An Australian TV reporter wrote that they taught us a vivid lesson.

Rick said, my father is the greatest father in the world. Because he saved my life. Dick said that in fact, Rick saved him, too. Because two years ago, when the doctor checked his health, he found that his heart was out of order, and one of his arteries was blocked by 95%. The doctor said that Dick might have died of myocardial infarction as early as 15 years ago if he didn't have regular physical exercise to help his son realize his dream.

At present, with the full support of his father, Rick works in the computer laboratory of Boston University, helping to develop a system called Hawkeye, which can help the paralyzed to control the wheelchair connected to the computer through eye movement. Dick has retired. Fathers and sons should try to take part in some long-distance running every weekend, or give lectures all over the country. They introduced themselves, Rick wrote down his ideas on the interactive computer, and Dick conveyed them to the audience. They often say, "Rick went to a restaurant with his father when he was young. When someone saw him eating badly, they quickly changed tables or simply went home. Nowadays, there are fewer and fewer discriminators, but disabled people need to be more brave and self-reliant. "

This year's Father's Day, they will also take part in a long-distance race. Rick said: "I hope I can give my father a Father's Day gift one day, not only for us to compete together, but also for me to push him to run even a small step to express my gratitude." (Feng Zhe)