Greetings My Friend!
This is an unusual story, one that caught my eye last weekend when I was watching the Clemson-Florida State college football game. There was talk about Daniel Rodriguez, a 24-year-old, that was a walk-on to the 2012 team at wide receiver but also the recipient of a “Purple Heart” and “Bronze Star” for bravery in combat during a year of battle he endured on foreign soil.
Rodriguez was once a high school football player dreaming of one day playing Division One ball. Back then, he admits to problems at school. He let his parents’ divorce while in school affect him. Then, his father died four days after Daniels graduated from school. He was looking for a way out and decided to enlist in the United States Army and served in Iraq for 15 months during the troop surge of 2007. On his second tour, he found himself in Afghanistan and in the line of fire during one of the war's bloodiest fights in October, 2009.
That day, more than 300 Taliban insurgents attacked his army base that housed 53 American soldiers. Roughly 300-plus yards or the distance of three football fields lay between Rodriguez and the machine gun he was supposed to man during such encounters. So Rodriguez ran as quickly as he could along an inclined dirt path while errant bullets kicked rocks at his ankles.
Rodriguez arrived back at his machine gun just as his best friend (Pfc. Kevin Thompson) was coming outside only to see him struck in the head by a bullet. He was dead before he hit the ground. Rodriguez spent the rest of the day defending himself against the Taliban insurgents while seven more of his fellow soldiers were killed. Though just 5-8/175 in stature, Daniel twice tried to drag Thompson (6-5 and close to 300 pounds) inside. Each time, he was struck by shrapnel from rocket-propelled grenades. The first time, it struck his right leg. The second time, it struck his neck. The metal shards were so hot that his wounds were instantly cauterized. Another soldier had to pull the shrapnel from Rodriguez's neck with pliers.
Prior to that battle, Rodriguez would tell Thompson of his dreams to pursue a missed chance at playing college football. Upon Thompson’s death, he made it an “oath” to complete the mission! He received an honorable discharge from the Army a year after the Afghan fight in 2010. He returned home to the U.S. listless, guilt-ridden and depressed.
In time, he found his therapy in training to return to the football field in the fall of 2011. As the intensity of his workouts increased, his appetite returned, as did his ability to sleep for solid durations. Subsequently, he re-engaged with friends and family. Clemson offered him a chance to live out his dreams and gave him three years of eligibility.
"I'm using the hardships, the horrors, the killing, the friends that I've lost as my fuel to (get) where I want to be," Daniel said. "So I think if you can turn and manipulate anything negative in your life and use it as something good, that's what I've taken into my life."
When Clemson opened the season. Rodriguez made his first college catch. It was a simple 4-yard reception against Ball State on Sept. 8th. A dream just came true for he and his friend! In so doing, the Clemson crowd gave Daniel one of the loudest ovations ever given to a player!
Summing up the difference between teammates on the athletic field to those in the military, Daniel said: "At war, in the military, you're training constantly, everybody collectively goes to a location, a base, so that bond is so much thicker because you're so secluded or taken or sucked away from what you know. And then when you deploy, that guy is all you've got. His bullet is going to save you!”
ALWAYS RESPECT THE GAME YOU PLAY FELLAS! THERE ARE LITERALLY THOUSANDS OF PROSPECTS OUT THERE DYING FOR THAT CHANCE TO TAKE YOUR SPOT ON THE DEPTH CHART! WORK SO HARD THAT YOUR UNIFORM NEVER COMES OFF!
All the best my friend and best regards!
Jim
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“Self-pity is our worst enemy and if we yield to it, we can never do anything wise in this world” – stated by Helen Keller, our country’s first deaf/blind person to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree
This is an unusual story, one that caught my eye last weekend when I was watching the Clemson-Florida State college football game. There was talk about Daniel Rodriguez, a 24-year-old, that was a walk-on to the 2012 team at wide receiver but also the recipient of a “Purple Heart” and “Bronze Star” for bravery in combat during a year of battle he endured on foreign soil.
Rodriguez was once a high school football player dreaming of one day playing Division One ball. Back then, he admits to problems at school. He let his parents’ divorce while in school affect him. Then, his father died four days after Daniels graduated from school. He was looking for a way out and decided to enlist in the United States Army and served in Iraq for 15 months during the troop surge of 2007. On his second tour, he found himself in Afghanistan and in the line of fire during one of the war's bloodiest fights in October, 2009.
That day, more than 300 Taliban insurgents attacked his army base that housed 53 American soldiers. Roughly 300-plus yards or the distance of three football fields lay between Rodriguez and the machine gun he was supposed to man during such encounters. So Rodriguez ran as quickly as he could along an inclined dirt path while errant bullets kicked rocks at his ankles.
Rodriguez arrived back at his machine gun just as his best friend (Pfc. Kevin Thompson) was coming outside only to see him struck in the head by a bullet. He was dead before he hit the ground. Rodriguez spent the rest of the day defending himself against the Taliban insurgents while seven more of his fellow soldiers were killed. Though just 5-8/175 in stature, Daniel twice tried to drag Thompson (6-5 and close to 300 pounds) inside. Each time, he was struck by shrapnel from rocket-propelled grenades. The first time, it struck his right leg. The second time, it struck his neck. The metal shards were so hot that his wounds were instantly cauterized. Another soldier had to pull the shrapnel from Rodriguez's neck with pliers.
Prior to that battle, Rodriguez would tell Thompson of his dreams to pursue a missed chance at playing college football. Upon Thompson’s death, he made it an “oath” to complete the mission! He received an honorable discharge from the Army a year after the Afghan fight in 2010. He returned home to the U.S. listless, guilt-ridden and depressed.
In time, he found his therapy in training to return to the football field in the fall of 2011. As the intensity of his workouts increased, his appetite returned, as did his ability to sleep for solid durations. Subsequently, he re-engaged with friends and family. Clemson offered him a chance to live out his dreams and gave him three years of eligibility.
"I'm using the hardships, the horrors, the killing, the friends that I've lost as my fuel to (get) where I want to be," Daniel said. "So I think if you can turn and manipulate anything negative in your life and use it as something good, that's what I've taken into my life."
When Clemson opened the season. Rodriguez made his first college catch. It was a simple 4-yard reception against Ball State on Sept. 8th. A dream just came true for he and his friend! In so doing, the Clemson crowd gave Daniel one of the loudest ovations ever given to a player!
Summing up the difference between teammates on the athletic field to those in the military, Daniel said: "At war, in the military, you're training constantly, everybody collectively goes to a location, a base, so that bond is so much thicker because you're so secluded or taken or sucked away from what you know. And then when you deploy, that guy is all you've got. His bullet is going to save you!”
ALWAYS RESPECT THE GAME YOU PLAY FELLAS! THERE ARE LITERALLY THOUSANDS OF PROSPECTS OUT THERE DYING FOR THAT CHANCE TO TAKE YOUR SPOT ON THE DEPTH CHART! WORK SO HARD THAT YOUR UNIFORM NEVER COMES OFF!
All the best my friend and best regards!
Jim
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“Self-pity is our worst enemy and if we yield to it, we can never do anything wise in this world” – stated by Helen Keller, our country’s first deaf/blind person to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree
-----------------------------------------------------------
“I can give you a six-word formula for success: ‘Think things through, then follow through’” – stated by Captain Edward V. Rickenbacker, American Fighter Pilot during World War I and later head of
Eastern Air Lines.
-----------------------------------------------------------
“You’ve got to have the guts not to be afraid to screw up. The guys who Win are the ones who are not afraid to mess up. And that comes right from the heart” – stated by Fuzzy Zoeller, Masters Golf Champion
-----------------------------------------------------------
WHY NOT YOU?
- Today, many will awaken with a fresh sense of inspiration. Why not you?
- Today, many will choose to leave the ghost of yesterday behind and seize the immeasurable power
of today. Why not you?
- Today, many will break through the barriers of the past by looking at the blessings of the present. Why not you?
- Today, many will rise above their believed limitations and make contact with their powerful innate strength. Why not you?
- Today, many will choose to free themselves from the personal imprisonment of their bad habits. Why not you?
- Today, many will decide to no longer sit back with a victim mentality, but to take charge of their lives and make positive changes. Why not you?
- Today, many will take the action necessary to make a difference. Why not you?
Author: Steve Maraboli
###
“I can give you a six-word formula for success: ‘Think things through, then follow through’” – stated by Captain Edward V. Rickenbacker, American Fighter Pilot during World War I and later head of
Eastern Air Lines.
-----------------------------------------------------------
“You’ve got to have the guts not to be afraid to screw up. The guys who Win are the ones who are not afraid to mess up. And that comes right from the heart” – stated by Fuzzy Zoeller, Masters Golf Champion
-----------------------------------------------------------
WHY NOT YOU?
- Today, many will awaken with a fresh sense of inspiration. Why not you?
- Today, many will choose to leave the ghost of yesterday behind and seize the immeasurable power
of today. Why not you?
- Today, many will break through the barriers of the past by looking at the blessings of the present. Why not you?
- Today, many will rise above their believed limitations and make contact with their powerful innate strength. Why not you?
- Today, many will choose to free themselves from the personal imprisonment of their bad habits. Why not you?
- Today, many will decide to no longer sit back with a victim mentality, but to take charge of their lives and make positive changes. Why not you?
- Today, many will take the action necessary to make a difference. Why not you?
Author: Steve Maraboli
###
