Mental Fitness for Good Health

Steve Rom’s Mission

Steve Rom’s special message of love and giving to us, in his own words:

"Hi Dr. Hal,

Thanks so much for uplifting email.  We all helped to inspire people: not just those in the field (in the hospital room).  People like you are just as vital to the team is anyone.

I’d love to have a little to your blog.  Thanks so much for including us.

I will just typing a few graphs.

I was just interviewed by a reporter at the Minnesota Star-Tribune. (I’m in town for a book signing tomorrow night).  I told them that our story is simple: helping others.

Rod really had no reason to do what he did for me, to leave his life, fly across the country, and take the brunt of my illness off me by placing it on his shoulders.

I’m guessing why he did it, I presume he just decided at one point in life to live for others, pick them up, encourage them and help them achieve victory (be a teammate?).

Maybe it was football that taught him, or his mom, who raised him well as a single parent, or God.  Whatever it was, it aided me tremendously.  So all I want to do at this point in my life is to be more "Rod-like."

I decided that the most important thing in life is not financial or career success: its compassion for others and using your strengths to help them.  Why?  Because maybe it will come back to you: the person we help might return the favor (though that’s not the whole reason we do it.)

Now that I’ve been through what I have, I am able to inspire people.  This was hardly the case before I met Rod and got sick.  I couldn’t even inspire myself.  When Rod befriended me, a sportswriter of all people, he went out of his comfort zone (out of society’s borders as well) and taught me something: selflessness, understanding.

When he showed up in my hospital room after I took the news of my illness, it so bolstered me that I didn’t even care about the outcome of my devastating situation.  I was going to win the game just because I was going to give it my all and I had a teammate (a champion) to help me do it.

Rod used to tell me about his days playing at Michigan: "We never went into a game knowing anything other than WE WERE GOING TO WIN."

If it came to pass that I, in fact, wasn’t going to get out of that hospital, well heck, at least I had tried, left everything in the field as they say.  And isn’t that all we can really can do in life?

There are no guarantees, other than we are born and we die.  The rest is up to us– and fate.

Actually I believe it is God, and we could talk about that for days.  Right now, I just have to say that something brought Rod and I together, kept us together, helped us defeat that disease.  And, at again, my job is just to help others do the same.  I know I will."

I also received another e-mail from Steve Rom’s team.  This e-mail also put Steve and Rod’s life-saving contributions into perspective:

"Thanks to Steve and Rod’s story, patients will realize that their obstacles, those that one seemed so insurmountable, so daunting and unknown, are now clear in view, exposed and ready to be defeated."

I want to thank Steve Rom for freely and lovingly giving of himself.  Steve wants to be more "Rod-like".  After reading Steve’s e-mail, don’t we all want to be more "Rod and Steve-like"?

Steve, thank you again for inspiring us to always give our best and to value our team.

Remember, We Live within the Environment Created by Our Choices.

Dr. Hal

Life And Mental Fitness Coach

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