For the Love of the Game
by Gail-Ann Bishop
As a child, Jamal loved all sports. He used to play with his dad and brother on the weekends. Jamal grew tired of playing all these sports and knew that eventually he would have to decide on one. He choose his favorite... FOOTBALL!!!
Jamal had a small circle of friends that he would play with. Not all of them shared the same passion and interest as he did. They soon would grow apart, go their separate ways and live different lifestyles. Jamal always remained positive.
By the time Jamal entered high school, he was already a great athlete. Coaches came to his games to observe him and recruit him for college.
One day, during one of the biggest games of the season, Jamal was tackled to the ground. He realized that he could move. The coaches came over to assist. One one needed to say the obvious. Right at the moment, Jamal knew that he was paralyzed.
Jamal finally accepted his fate. He had become a quadriplegic. He spent the next coulpe of years in the hospital trying to recover. After extensive hours of daily therapy, Jamal was never the same again. They even performed several operations on him.
After the numerous amounts of prayer, positive thoughts and visits from friends, family members and coworkers, Jamal to his injuries. As his father would always say , he "departed us doing what he loved to do". Jamal will be misssed.