I asked two of my friends to share a little about their stories and their battles with concussions. I asked them to share what it was like having something they care about being taken away from them at such a young age and very unexpectedly. My prayer is that you are encouraged by what they had to say and the way they handled their situations. I am very thankful that they took the time to briefly write up something for me.
Grant Gayler
As a kid I can remember the thrills the game of basketball gave me. I remember the Friday nights where I couldn’t sleep because I was so excited for my game the next morning at the Boys and Girls Club. I found peace when I played, all sense of anxiety and stress would escape my body when I stepped on the court.
At a young age I understood the importance of a higher education. I worked hard through middle and high school with the dream of going to college and I knew that basketball was my ticket to do so. I searched for a way and found myself at Bethel College, living my dream of continuing to play the sport that I fell in love with at the age of 8.
Each year I would see the senior class play their final game, thinking to myself that the day where I would put up my shoes and say goodbye to the game was far off. My last game just so happened to be halfway through my junior season. I never got to experience the proper send off or goodbye from the game. No one told me that the game on December 20, 2017 would be my last, I didn’t get to prepare for it, the game was simply ripped from me. On that day I got my fourth concussion inside of two years. Something told me as my teammates picked me up and walked me to the end of the bench that it would be the last possession I would ever play.
After many months of therapy, hard conversations with doctors/family and not knowing what I was doing or where I was half the time, I came to peace with the fact that I would never play again. I’m sure that the reigning champs of the Golden State Warriors are devastated that I won’t be joining their roster next year but that’s beside the point, I realized that there is much more in life than basketball. As for now I’m at peace with where I’m at, I’m sure it’ll be much harder when the season comes around and I’m not lacing up with my brothers taking the court one last time, especially with my fellow seniors.
I’ve learned a lot about myself over the recent 9 or so months, God has called me to be much more than a basketball player. People ask me all the time if my decision to walk away from the game was hard, don’t get me wrong, of course, but I am at peace with it, I trust that He has much more in store for me than just the game. I have learned that life is short and that nothing inside this fragile life will last forever. I have learned to enjoy each day doing what God has called me to do because He might have something else planned for me tomorrow.
Kristen Mitchell
10 years old, with the wind in my face and no hands steering my bike, I’m going full speed down the paved hill. I am flying. I am invincible. My bicycle, however... is not. The chain locks and sends me over the handlebars. My head smacks the pavement. At this moment, my journey with concussions starts.
In just this past year, I added three more tally marks to my concussion count. If you’re wondering if I’m a reckless person or maybe just really clumsy, let me explain. Since I was 8 years old, I’ve been playing volleyball. I’ve spent a great portion of my life sprinting, diving, rolling - throwing myself to the ground to keep a ball from hitting the floor (inspiring, isn’t it?). Plus, my head, a doctor explained, is one that is more prone to head injury than other people’s. It seems 13 years of sports + predisposition to concussions = a lot of concussions.
This summer, after yet another concussion, I had “the conversation" with my coach and my career as an athlete ended right before my senior season started. It was getting too dangerous. And yes, logically speaking, I could tell myself… Life is so much more than sports. One more year, I would have graduated and been done playing anyway. So it’s okay, it’s just one less year. But, truthfully, the loyal part of me says… Volleyball has developed grit, discipline, health, joy, leadership, interpersonal skills, and a thousand other things. It’s been an incredible tool for ministry, it's so much fun to get to glorify God with this gift. My teammates are like family. It’s been humbling and an honor to take part in shaping who our team is and what we represent. It hurts to be done, I had one more year to give.
I share all of that, not because I really like talking about it. Vulnerability kind of sucks. Yeah yeah... I know it’s good and important, I just mean, it’s hard. But I share it because in these bits of change, grief, and feeling broken (literally but maybe slightly metaphorically too), God is at work. I am filled with gratitude for that and happy to share about it.
The way He’s been at work in my life through this is simple but very profound. He’s been reminding me of who He is. When I walk into the gym and watch my team, the giant banner in my head usually says something like: you’re too broken to be out there. But day by day, through that little nudge of the Holy Spirit, that banner gets replaced by thoughts that are actually true: This is hard but God is gracious. God is trustworthy. God is faithful. God is patient. God is gentle. God is steadfast. God is bigger than me. Those sentences play on repeat in my mind.
This doesn’t mean that God has asked me not to be sad or said that this change shouldn’t be hard. He’s just asked me to draw close to Him and stay anchored in who He is. Anytime we have something to grieve, change to embrace, or feel broken then we have a choice to make. Do we let God in on the process; Do we seek God in the midst of it or not? Sometimes I’ve wanted try and ignore instead of processing or I’ve wanted to just clench my fists and get through it. But He’s simply asked me to release my grip, to open my hands in surrender and allow Him to join me in the process.
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