No one wants to lose, to fail, to miss the mark. Overcoming adversity and claiming victory is what we all dream about.
But not many of us are offered the chance to win against really big odds - the kind of odds that affect not just our own life, but the lives of many others around us.
On Jan. 15, 2009, you may have been one of the millions of television viewers staring in awe at news images of a jetliner floating in the icy Hudson River just west of Manhattan, while rescue crews in boats and helicopters plucked terrified, shivering people off the wings and out of the water, one at a time, to safety.
It was one of the coldest days of the year in New York when US Airways Flight 1549, a reliable Airbus A320 carrying 150 passengers and crew, took off from La Guardia Airport and before it achieved altitude, suddenly lost power and began to fall out of the sky.
What happened was something no one could have predicted: a flock of geese flew in front of the plane, and numerous birds were drawn into the plane's engines. The Airbus A320 is designed to withstand a single bird up to four pounds. This was an entire flock of geese, average length at least two feet, average weight at least ten pounds.
Chesley Sullenberger, the plane's captain, and first officer Jeffrey Skiles, realized almost immediately there was only one thing to do: ditch the Airbus in the Hudson. Attempting a landing somewhere in Manhattan or in New Jersey across the river was not a viable alternative.
The air crew successfully landed the plane in the river with consummate skill, now regarded as the most successful ditching of a plane in aviation history. Thanks to the smooth river landing and amazingly fast and effective rescue efforts, not a single person was lost.
Water landings are the rarest of plane crashes, and they have a miserable record of injuries and deaths. Because of the amazingly successful outcome for US Airways Flight 1549, Captain Sullenberger has since become something of a celebrity. But everyone on that plane was a winner that day, against some of the most daunting odds one can imagine.
At Novus Medical Detox Center in Pasco County, Florida, we celebrate with our patients when they win out against the heavy odds stacked up against them - drug and alcohol dependence and lives often in ruin. Here is an inspiring success story from one of our own winners.
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Mother:
(methadone, alcohol, Xanax)
"I loved it! I want to acknowledge Jean, Patty, JJ, Montana, Hayden, Joe, Jodi, Sheri and Tim. Frances is an extremely hardworking and attentive nurse and spent a great deal of time helping me out.
I came to Novus feeling a bit hopeless and completely ashamed... I leave Novus today feeling hopeful and confident.
The positive approach and feedback from the Novus staff gave me back a strong source of empowerment by helping me to see that not only can I rid myself of the addict label for god but that I can and will get back to being who I really am... 'me'." |
