Hello,

My name is Sergio Sanchez; I’m the Good Looking Mexican in a Wheelchair, that has a smile on his face. That is usually how I introduce myself when I meet new people.  I want to give my readers a picture of how I get through a day living in a wheelchair, a snapshot of me being a father while still maintaining a normal life, and staying sane.

Being in a wheelchair forces me to see the world in a different way. Everyday activities can become challenges.

Let me give you an example, something as simple as going to the grocery store could turn out to be a disaster. If there is no handicapped parking available I’m forced to park in a normal space. This is ok until another car parks on my driver’s side and then there’s no room between the two cars for me to get my wheelchair through. How do I get into my car so I can drive away like everybody else?  This is when It hits me I’m different, handicapped is the first thing that pops into my head. So just going to the grocery store takes some thought for a guy in a wheelchair. I have to think things through from start to finish before I make any move. I turn into the robot character from the movie The Terminator, I scan my surroundings, identifying any danger, and try to figure out how to deal with it, without drawing too much attention to myself. Because if it takes too long others will see and try to help and before I know it I have a crowd around me trying to help. Well that word pops back up Handicapped. I know people mean well and want to help, but most of the time they get in my way.

I’ve learned that I need to travel as light as possible; it easier for me to get around faster, this means no wheelchair breaks, no backpack, no arm rests, and no handles on my wheelchair. I could say that I have mastered the art of breaking down my chair and putting it into my car in less than 3 minutes. This is important because this is the amount of time it takes for someone to get out of a car and around to my side and not have to stand there waiting for me to put my wheelchair together. Thinking things through this way was helped me feel more normal and not so handicapped when I’m in public.

As a father I see that my kids are always watching me, so I use these times as a teaching moment for them to see that if they put their minds to it they can do anything  no matter the situation. I don’t want them to see that I use the excuses of not being able to walk to hold me back.  Yoda said it best “Do or Do Not There Is No Try”

Yoda says it all. Are you trying to achieve your goals or are you achieving your goals? Are you trying to write a book or are you writing a book? Are you trying to get in shape or are you getting in shape? You must do or do not. There really is no try. #motivation #motivationalmonday #yoda #doordonot #motivationalquotes

A photo posted by @thewheelsofgrace on Jun 6, 2016 at 1:40pm PDT

As a kid I wish I would have lived my life with this attitude. I would not have had as many struggles or used as many excuses while trying to find my way. I could have achieved my true inner goals if I lived by the DO. It’s sad to say that it took me being shot and being confined to a wheelchair for me to open my eyes. I had to be physically handicapped before I could see how handicapped I was inside.  But this is why I have decided to share my life’s story with the world.  Its a story that shows that through tragedy and an attitude of DO, good can come, from the inside out.

I believe that we are all handicapped in some way, the only difference is that some are easier to see than others.

I keep my sanity by not letting myself be limited by being handicapped and staying away from the dark side.  I never imagined that as I was dealing with my struggles of living in a wheelchair that I would gain an audience that would be interested in how and why I do what I do.  Well it’s simple to see why people are interested, it’s because many of us live being handicapped by our situation and are in search of the light. My message is that life is worth fighting for and that we all can find what we are looking for we just need to DO! But I must say that I couldn’t do it alone. I had to hit rock bottom before I could grow. I had no clue to the open hands waiting for me in the darkness, waiting for me to lead me to the light. Instantly my heart and my mind were attacked to get rid of my guilt, anger, and hate erupted. The battle was won and what replaced the ugly in my heart and mind was love, hope, and faith. God needed to put all of the pieces of my life together like a puzzle so he could reveal to me the image of what my life should look like. I had to let go of all the anger, hate, and guilt that I had carried around my whole life. That was my true handicap. That day God gave me purpose by opening my eyes and showing me how he cured me from a handicap that was bigger than not being able to ever walk again.

This is my story and my journey is the share it with the world.  I want people to see that I don’t use the excuse of not being able to walk to hold me back.  I want them to see how thankful I am for getting a second chance at life.

Keep Rolling On!

The guy in the chair, who lost his ability to walk, but found his mobility through a change in his heart. A change when his mind was awakened by the gift of Purpose.
“And your life will be brighter than the noonday.
Its darkness will be like the morning.” Job11:17

I had the opportunity this week to speak in front of a crowd of young teenagers, to share my story and some of the challenges that I faced when I was put into my wheelchair.

I first started off talking about when I was their age and how much I really struggled at that time in my life with who I was. I truly believed that I had nothing good to offer, I felt alone, I felt afraid and I had no one to help me in my struggles.

I told them that I believe all teenagers struggle with some form with these emotions and anxieties,  I needed to make sure that they heard out loud that there are more people going through the same kind of struggles everyday. Some of these people we’d call friends, some we only know because they went to the same schools, maybe the same church or live in the same neighborhood. I promised them that we all of us have gone through these struggles and every single one of us and has been forced to learn how to deal with them in their own way or another, some good some bad.

I spoke of how easy it is to get people’s attention now all I have to do is just roll myself into a room and people become curious and want to know why I’m in a wheelchair.  Who is this guy? I am Sergio Sanchez the good-looking guy in the wheelchair. My chair makes it hard to be invisible now but it doesn’t mean that it’s changed any of the emotions and anxieties that I still go through and have gone through.

I had no outlet for feeling alone and unworthy, like sports, church youth groups or just a good role model to follow. Instead, I gravitated to the only thing that I know and that was the streets. I learned fast there are certain things that I could never do in front of people when they have decided to go down the road of the streets like crying, show weakness, or showing that somebody ever get the better of you. You’re always put in a position to have to prove that you’re down to do anything and that your not scared.  To prove that you are willing to cross the line and take a risk. To prove that no matter how big the person is in front of you that you won’t back down. This was translated into acceptance and respect.

I craved the respect so much that it seemed that I lived in trouble, I was always part of the bad stuff and I gained a reputation for being down, crazy, and a troublemaker. In the eyes of my buddies, and my friends in the streets I felt like I was the man on top of the world. I never felt invisible and I always felt that I had somebody in my corner.

This way of living was why I ended up in a wheelchair. Being Reckless and only caring about how my friends saw me caused me to put myself in bad situations regularly. Situations that had me being shot at or chased by the cops on a regular basis it’s amazing that I’m still alive and it’s amazing that I never made it to prison. But this was only the beginning not the end for me.

When people see me in my wheelchair I can see that their wheels start spinning trying to imagine all the hardships that I have gone through. They want to know how I ended up in my wheelchair, the actions the steps, they want to hear everything. As soon as I let them know that I was shot 6 times their eyes open wide with amazement and unbelief that this could happen to somebody and that they still could be alive but when I tell them I was shot a second time in the back of the head they’re left speechless, there’s no way that this could ever happen to someone and not die.

I let people know that me surviving had nothing to do with anything that I did, but that it had everything to do with the Lord protecting me for something bigger. I am an example of his awesome grace. He looked past my sins and He’s revealed my purpose in life, it is to share my story so that people could see and believe.  I want my story to tell a story of hope, of love and of the Lord’s grace. That no one should have to feel that they have to walk this life alone afraid and invisible.

The guy in the chair, who lost his ability to walk, but found his mobility through a change in his heart. A change when his mind was awakened by the gift of Purpose.
“And your life will be brighter than the noonday.
Its darkness will be like the morning.” Job11:17