Through Tragedy Blooms Gratitude

On January 20, 2002, I was in a devastating car accident caused by domestic violence that forever changed my life.

I was 21 years old, with a bright future ahead of me and a beautiful 2-year-old little girl.  When the accident initially happened, I was given only 48 hours to live. Doctors told my family that if I ever came out of the coma, I probably would not even know my name.

Two and a half months later, I began to wake up and I had my total mind…

Thus began my journey, proving that anything is possible and that in life, there are so many reasons to be grateful.

The first couple of years were very hard on me emotionally.  I was told that I would never walk again.  I felt as if there was no reason or purpose for me to even be alive.  I could no longer have the freedom to teach my little girl how to dance, ride a bike, or even carry her if she got tired. 

I could not understand why this had happened to me. I kept asking God… Why?  Why me?  What did I do to deserve this? I hid my inner feelings from everyone around me with a smile, pretending to be happy that I was alive.  Inside I was drowning in self-pity.

Slowly, I started finding reasons to be happy everyday instead of dwelling on what I had lost.  I was gradually missing out on all of the moments that I should have been grateful for because I was dwelling on the past, which I could not change.

I had three beautiful little girls, a home, wonderful friends and family, and most importantly, I was given the gift of being able to wake up everyday and live my life.  I had to make a change.

My change began one day, when I decided to write my feelings and story down just to get it out…it was my therapy.  One of my best friends read some of my writing and told me that it was so touching and I needed to share it more openly.  She explained how I was an inspiration for her.  When she would have a bad day, she would look at me or think of me, and see how I was still living my life everyday despite losing so much.  A light bulb lit up in my mind. I realized that I could possibly inspire many people with my story if I started sharing it.

I started creating my website, from that point on.  (http://lilunperfectangel.webs.com) I began marketing and promoting it, with hopes of turning my tragedy into an inspiration for people that read it.  Once I first started getting hits on the site, I also started getting comments and emails from total strangers from around the world, thanking me for inspiring and motivating them to keep on living past the obstacles that life had thrown them.

I was absolutely amazed.  God really did have a bigger plan for my life and all the things that I had endured were for a reason much bigger than I had ever imagined.

In May of 2008, I was contacted by someone that worked for a company called Colours Wheelchair in Corona, California who had read my website.  They explained to me that the company was looking toward possibly expanding to the East Coast, and that they would need people that were inspiring and active in the disabled community to promote their company and their mission statement.  I was so excited with this awesome opportunity.  More and more opportunities just like this started popping into my life.  I was in awe.

I began speaking locally to other newly injured spinal cord patients, schools and churches.  It became my healing process, to share my story publicly.  I was even asked to participate in the Ms. Wheelchair North Carolina 2009 pageant, in April 2009, to compete not only for the title and crown, but more importantly for the chance to represent people living with disabilities across the state of North Carolina.  I was so honored.

Throughout the next year, I kept in mind that I would not be participating in the pageant to win, but rather to have the experience and form new friendships with the other ladies.  All of that happened when the date finally approached on April 18, 2009, plus more than I could have ever imagined.

I was crowned Ms. Wheelchair North Carolina 2009! I was given the opportunity to not only continue sharing my story more publicly, but also to be an advocate for other people living with disabilities throughout my entire state.  I now have the platform to really, truly inspire people and reach my dream of turning my tragedy into a triumph that I am now grateful for. 

Yes, I am very grateful for my wheelchair, my paralysis, and my life! Without any of this happening to me, I would not have found my God given purpose to inspire and help other people realize their dreams and goals, in spite of any physical limitations that they may have.

I have so much to be grateful for. Even on the most trying days, I have to close my eyes and think of what my life could have become, if I hadn’t taken a positive path towards my future. 

My future has just begun. This is only the starting point, and if I had given up, I would have missed out on the opportunities that I have been blessed with and all of the ones that are yet to come.  I have proven to myself that being grateful does more for your life than just make it better, it opens up so many doors of opportunity by bringing positivity, determination and most importantly happiness.

No matter what we are faced with in life, we still have so much to be thankful for.  We must not ever forget that.  Once we lose sight of all of the things that matter the most, we lose a piece of our reason for existence.
“Once in a while you get shown the light in the strangest of places if you look at it right.”
-Robert Hunter

Erika Bogan, Miss Wheelchair North Carolina, 2009

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A note from the Gratitude Circle – We are so honored and excited to present you with Erika’s blog post and her inspiring story.  We would love for you to continue on and visit Erika’s Website at http://lilunperfectangel.webs.com.

Erika is in need of sponsors in order to compete for the National Title of Miss Wheelchair America.  Head on over to her site and click on the donation button, if you would like to donate to help Erika share her platform and inspire others on a national level.  Every little bit helps and is most appreciated.

We hope you truly enjoyed this post as much as we did and feel inspired by Erika’s story.

If you are on twitter, please follow Erika @unperfectangel