Hodge Wood Pens A Story to Inspire Others

I suppose one can't name one's own memoir Profiles in Courage. The title has been taken and this is one profile, after all, so profiles couldn't be plural. It's also, sometimes sorrowfully unpopular in our culture to display pride. Still, that's what Chum Water is, a profile in courage.

Courage is a funny word. So many have different perceptions of what must be done to apply it to a human being. In fact, Hodge Wood has written a memoir of his own courage and not once used the word.

Of course, courage can come to us in different ways. Wood was a veteran of a war that required courage just to go. The courage that makes this book a page-turner was foisted upon him by fate. Yes, he was acting foolishly. Many of us do when we're young. That doesn't diminish the courage it took to deal with becoming a paraplegic nor the grace it required to do with such style.

Chum Water traces Wood's experiences from his terrible accident, through hospitals staffed with great people and those who were so horrific they could barely be called human. The story follows him not only through therapy but through the process of choosing a profession -and succeeding in it- one that would help others who suffer as he has. It is also a love story. Throw in some water sports and a little football and you have a heart warmer you won't want to miss because it is so readable.

Having said that, there is something more. Hodge Wood's story is a story that is being repeated over and over again. It is more common now than ever because technology has helped our soldiers survive but is also sending them home with disabilities like never before. This is a book that every wounded soldier should be gifted with because it's a story of hope. It is a book that every healthcare worker should read because it will restore their pride in a job well done and the possibilities for the future.

Hooray for this profile in courage. Hooray for Hodge Wood.