Salute to the World's First Armless Certified Air Pilot!

I was at my friends' party, when her one year old son was trying to climb up the stair to get to the second floor of the house. This little kid was quite careful, pressing on each step firmly with his two hands. After he placed his hands on the step, then he raised one leg, placed it on the lower step, then the next leg.  When he achieved stability on one step, he proceeded to the next step with his two hands again. I was watching him admiring his determination to climb these steps

All of a sudden, his mom came screaming, telling him to stop, picked him up and carried him away saying that this was too dangerous for him.  I have parents lamented to me on numerous occasions about their kids  not strong enough to do certain things and would not allow them to go on camping trips.

This same protective attitude repeats itself many times on  playgrounds, in schools and even throughout the lives of some university students. I heard of those parents who cooked, packed and labelled all the meals for their university aged sons/ daughters to take back for the following week when they come home for the weekend from university. Some even drive and deliver these meals every weekend to them at the university campus. Small wonder why some of these university graduates could not do things or find jobs for themselves upon graduation because some parents would not allow their grown children to find a job outside of their home city.

This parental overprotective attitude contrasts sharply with the young woman reported on news last weekend.

Jessica Cox - an armless woman, caught my attention as I listened to the BBC news in our kitchen. Jessica, born in Arizona, USA, made history last weekend as she became the first armless certified pilot in the world!

It was amazing watching her performing all the daily tasks with her feet such as combing her  hair, getting dressed, playing piano, eating with chopsticks, driving etc. It seemed that there was nothing Jessica cannot do for herself.

It would have been so easy for Jessica to simply give up, do nothing, sit and complain all day about how unlucky and unfair life has dealt her. Instead, she accepts the disabilities in her life, works hard to overcome difficult barriers and seeks alternative ways to carry out her daily chores.

Though armless, Jessica leads an independent and productive live. Refusing to be held back by her physical disabilities,  Jessica has a very positive and determined attitude towards life. She appears to enjoy life to the fullest, taking part in various sports and is having fun while doing it.

I love hearing inspirational stories such as this and I admire brave people like Jessica. They are our real hero in society. While so many people complain about what they don't have in life and are dissatisfied with what they have, Jessica inspires us with her positive can do attitude. Next time, if your friend grumbles about the misfortune life has given him/ her, tell her about Jessica and how she has made a wonderful life for herself!

For parents who are afraid to let their children do anything on their own, please look at what Jessica could do for herself! Never underestimate what children/ people can do when they are determined to do so!

R.T. Toronto