Next month, Matt May's new book, Shibumi Strategy, will be published. It's a well-told fable about transformation(s) that can happen in everyone's life. Matt has transformed himself into a legitimate author and has penned two other books, The Elegant Solution and In Pursuit of Elegance. He was kind enough to give me a "galley" copy of the new book.
Matt has a very genuine writing style, and his books are intended to be transformational more than informational. The Shibumi Strategy is indeed transformational. It has personal meaning for me in that it reflects a major transition I experienced in my own life. I recently wrote a letter in to New Mobility magazine which was published this month:
"The Good Side of Trauma" is a very compelling article. My story entails progressive disability, but there was a "moment of clarity" that changed my life completely. I have limb girdle muscular dystrophy, which remained undiagnosed for many years. It started as a peculiar gait that got more noticeable. It wasn't much of a problem through my teens, but as the disease progressed, walking, using steps and doing anything physical became more difficult because of deteriorating muscles. By my 30s, rising from a seated position was somewhat difficult, but I remained ambulatory. By 37, I needed a wheelchair, but sheer stubbornness prevented it! I began falling frequently, resulting in many injuries. My parents viewed a wheelchair as giving up, and that was my belief as well.
From 37 to 43, I became a hermit, leaving the house only to work my desk job. At home, I lived in my bed. I was developing some severe personality disorders and separated myself from my wife, my kids, extended family and friends. I lived in a constant state of paralyzing fear.
Then came my moment of clarity, in April 1998. Driving home that day, I felt an intense notion that I had hit bottom. I strongly considered ending it. But I decided that life was worth living, and a wheelchair was developmental, not terminal. I got the wheelchair, adapted my home and began using an accessible van. I just recently got a new high-end wheelchair, lowered-floor van, and more home modifications.
Since that day in April I've experienced those five areas of personal change identified by researchers Tedeschi and Calhoun. I've also discovered innovation and possibility, began reading and writing more, and got involved in disability issues, serving six years on a board of a large CIL. It's true, disability sucks, and sometimes life is a kick in the nuts. But amidst all of that, I found the world of possibility. Post traumatic Growth is real.
While reading Shibumi Strategy, I realized that although the story is different, it has astounding parallels to my own life. And all I can do is extend a heartfelt "thank you" to my friend Matt May for writing such a wonderful book. Get it, read it!
A wheelchair is a tool. A tool with a big purpose in life, perhaps, but a tool nonetheless. It takes a lot of time to adjust, which can give the idea that it's a negative, terminal thing. However, once you become more open, more willing to see and adjust to the world from the perspective of a wheelchair, one starts heading into the path of growth.
Posted by: Thomas Wright | February 17, 2012 at 05:11 PM