Terry Fox: An Inspiration(I)

2 Terry Fox: An Inspiration (I) He was only seventeen years old when he got the horrible news. Cancer. The word must have frightened the young high school student as he listened to his doctor. He had plans, you know. All youngsters do as they make their way through high school and begin to think about their futures. He must have felt hopeless that day in his doctor's office. A month before, he had been in a minor car accident. He had some pain in his right knee. But being a typical young boy, he ignored the pain. When he developed a noticeable limp, he could no longer pretend that everything was okay. His mother insisted on taking him to the doctor. A few days later, Terry found out that he had a rare form of cancer. His right leg would have to be amputated 6 inches above the knee.

As he lay on his bed the night before his operation, Terry could easily have given up. Life must have seemed terribly unfair. His friends were thinking about their final year in high school, and he was thinking about losing his leg the next morning. But, instead of hopelessness, hope seemed to take over the young man's mind. Instead of thinking “ why me" , Terry Fox made up his mind to make the best of a bad situation. He would meet the challenge head-on. He would make it through the operation. After the surgery, he received his artificial leg and learned how to use it. He decided to work day and night to become a long-distance runner. What a dream! Imagine how difficult this must have been. Think about balance. Think about strength. Think about determination and dedication. But Terry did not think about giving up. He was going to do something about cancer. It had hit him, and he was going to fight back. Impossible as it seemed, he was going to run across Canada, all the way from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean. He was going to run 50 kilometres a day for six months. He hoped to raise one million dollars for cancer research. Few believed he would make it. But the young man from Canada had a dream.