Piazza Venezia

As a graduation present my loving and generous parents have taken me to Europe. We went to Pairs, Venice, and now we are finishing our journey in Rome. The trip has been amazing and I’m having so much fun learning about the history. The trip has had its ups and downs but today was just a little bit different. My family went to the top of the Piazza Venezia, or as we called it “the wedding cake”, to check out the view that showed you pretty much all of Rome. The view was amazing and we got some great pictures but as we went to leave we noticed that the elevator wasn’t coming when we pushed the button for it. The elevator in the Piazza Venezia was all glass so we were able to look and see that it was stuck half way up with people in it. It was a hot day so you know the elevator was heating up inside. There was nothing we could do for the people inside the elevator and we had to worry about how we were going to get down. My mom noticed that there were steps through a door on the side so the majority of people went down but it was too narrow for my wheelchair so we were stranded at the top. We could’ve been really upset at this situation but the way I looked at it was, we had a private rooftop look at the entire city of Rome where we were able to take pictures like we were back in Roman times and that was our castle. As soon as we were done taking our pictures and having our fun, the fire department was there and helped us get my wheelchair down the steps. About five minutes after we got down, we saw the people that were caught in the elevator coming out. Most of them seemed ok but this one lady was sitting on the ground and looked like she was beaten by the harsh conditions in that elevator. We offered her some water and the look of gratitude on her face was amazing. Here we are in one of the most historic cities in the world and a simple offer of water was the best thing this lady could ask for. 

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Best Friends

Friends are people that will always be there for you. One of my best friends, Griffin, has been by my side since the first day of summer school entering high school. He continues to be there for me today as our careers, me speaking and griffin filming, just happen to fit perfectly together.  Check out this video as Freddie and I talk about some of our closest friends. 

The Way She Taught Me

Today marks the eight year anniversary of my inspiration being called back to heaven. If you read through my blog you will see stories about how her possitive attitude and incredible spirit throughout her battle with cancer has inspired me everyday of my life. I live my life as a fighter, never giving up on myself or my goals because that is the way she taught me to live. Our family, along with Freddie and Griffin, celebrated her life today in one of our shows by taking one of her fun loving and sometimes rule breaking traditions by eating dessert before dinner! Not just desert but Sees Candy, one of her favorites. Check out the video and live life to the fullest just like my Aunt Shell did. 

Home

What do you think of when you talk about your home? Freddie and I both have had different experiences that help define our view of home. Check out what our views are and tell us how you define a home. 

Enter to Learn, Leave to Serve

The saying that has followed me for the past eight years has been, “enter to learn, leave to serve.” It all began when I entered De La Salle and the teachers were always tell us that saying. I learned as much as I could in those four years so when I graduated I could carry out the message to serve. Not only was that saying popular at De La Salle but it followed me through my journey at Saint Mary’s. Now that I have graduated I am excited to serve my community as a speaker with all of the knowledge I have accumulated over these past years. Check out the latest segment of the Freddie and Alex show as we discuss our experience with this special saying.  

Michael Parros

Yesterday I received a phone call that completely changed my day and I haven’t stopped thinking about it since.  I was told that one of my classmates at De La Salle had passed away.  Michael Parros had just graduated from the U.S. Military Academy in May and was commissioned as an infantry officer.  He planned to attend the Infantry Basic Officer Leader Course after completing Ranger School.  I know that Michael would have had no trouble completing his goal because just like when we were at De La Salle together, nothing was going to stand in his way of accomplishing a task when he set his mind to it. His hard work and determination was the key behind many of Michael’s successes. However, the thing that I will always remember about Michael, or as he was known to all his friends and teammates, Parros,  was the upbeat, fun-loving attitude that he walked around with every day. We will never truly understand the reason that Michael had to leave us so early in his life but it is not for us to question. Maybe God needed somebody in heaven to make him laugh and smile and we all know how good Michael was at putting a smile on our faces. You will be missed and thought of every day by all of your brothers at De La Salle Michael! RIP

In our latest video, Freddie helped me to find understanding in the passing of my friend. It is still a tough thing to understand but I hope this video and Freddie’s insight will help you too.

 https://youtu.be/6xMlaBjVPGI

Read more here: http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/news/local/military/article92206607.html#storylink=cpy

Everything Happens for a Reason

Waking up this morning I checked my social media outlets as I always do to see what’s going on in the world and with my friends. I was pleased to see that I had a notification on Facebook that Freddie had tagged me in his post “Robert” on Freddiesilveria.com. Freddie talked about a man he met at the gym named Robert, who was in a wheelchair, and how working and interacting with me influenced how he approached this man. Robert’s attitude throughout Freddie’s story reminded me a lot of my own attitude when I don’t think I need help. 

I have had a story in my life very similar to the one in Freddie’s post but mine was from the other perspective. At a banquet for the De La Salle football team my senior year in high school, the head coach, Bob Ladouceur, got up and gave a speech about the most inspirational player on the team. I was friends with all the guys on the team so as the speech went on I was trying to guess who he was talking about. As the speech continued I began to realize he was talking about me and instantly began crying because I never knew the impact I had on a coach that I didn’t even think knew my name. In his speech, Coach Lad talked about the first time he saw me on campus and thought how great it would be if he could help me in some way.  As I approached a closed door coach Lad saw his opportunity. He ran to get the door but I had said, “no I got it!” I pushed it open myself zooming away on my scooter to class. Coach Lad was confused and thought that maybe I was just having a bad day. He got another opportunity a few days later when he saw me going towards another closed door, but again I said, “no I got it!” I bulled my way through another door. Coach Lad then understood that it was part of my spirit to do everything I can for myself and ask for help only when I truly needed it. 

Everything in our life does happen for a reason and sometimes we can’t understand what the reason is until later. People like Freddie and Coach Lad are important for people like Robert and me because they’ll offer needed help when not asked for and be the first one to volunteer when we do ask.