In June of 2016 I sustained an injury to the face while playing a baseball game which caused me to have multiple facial surgeries and be inactive from all sports activity for months. This experience is why I believe that the words that you speak over yourself and about your life have the power to positively or negatively impact your life. I believe in the power of words.
After the Penn State baseball’s regular season is over players have summer ball assignments to go to to continue to improve on their game. I was sent to Elmira, New York. In the Fourth game of my summer season is when I got injured. It was the second inning and I was playing center field. I was going for a fly ball and the outfielder beside me did not hear me call him off to catch the ball. I dove for the ball and I blacked out…I came back and saw people running at me, then I blacked out again and came back and saw the top of the ambulance, blacked out again and came back and saw the top of a helicopter, blacked out again and came back and I was being carted on the roof of the hospital and I blacked out again and when I woke up for good I was in a hospital bed getting stitches above my eye.
I had gotten kneed in the face and had broken every bone on the left side of my face and cracked some on the right side. Long story short I ended up having to have 6 facial/eye surgeries. I made it through that time with God and with the words that I chose to speak over my situation and my life. The thought that immediately came to my mind when I was in the bed was not what had happened to me, but it was if I was ever going to be able to baseball again. And at the time I did not know because I didn’t even know what my injury was, but I knew it was serious. But I did not let any negative words come out of my mouth. Through all of the surgeries and treatment that I had to go through I only spoke that I was going to be able to play baseball again and that I would better than I was before. And that I would look like I did before the injury because at the time I did not. I did not speak what I saw at the time, but I spoke what I believed was going to happen and in mind what had already happened. Doctors and others looked at me and saw somebody that was injured, but when I looked at myself I saw someone who was not injured but recovering and stronger than ever.