Attitude Makes the Difference

In the morning, I usually teach all the students a quick motivational theme in order to get their day rolling. The stories come from Chicken Soup for the Soul or Motivated to Succeed or some other touchy-feely feel good substance. Yesterday, I shared one called Attitude Makes the Difference about a man, who no matter what happened, always said "if I was doing any better, I would be twins!" So sugary sweet, I thought I would get a cavity, and truth be told, I was a little embarrassed by the sheer corniness of it. I finished the lesson and went about my day. Around four o'clock I got a phone call from one of the Chinese administrative assistants. AA's are usually former students who excelled and decided to come back and volunteer their time and services to help future classes. Well, this AA told me that a student named Michael broke his leg playing basketball. I have handled student medical problems in the past, so they usually call me, no big deal. I get to the basketball court to find a group of students and staff huddled around Michael who is laying on the steaming hot blacktop. "He broke his leg" was a slight understatement. His leg was laid out in a completely unnatural position and slightly below the knee there was a bulge in his pants leg, which I believed to the bone protuding. I took this all in and then making sure he wasn't going into shock, I asked "How are you doing, Michael?" He replied "If I were any better, I would be twins!" Amazing. I made sure an ambulance was called for him, and then called my superior Julia to inform her.
"How bad is it?"
"Let's just say...the leg bone isn't connected to the knee bone..."
The ambulance arrived a few minutes later and the paramedics quickly asked him in Chinese if he was allergic to any medication and other health questions. Michael, despite the searing pain from a detached fibula and fractured tibia, answered in English. The staff was quick to remind him that he was allowed to speak Chinese, but he steadfastly refused citing the agreement he signed at the beginning of the session. This agreement tells students that for 20 days they are to speak, read, and write only in English, but most students slip out a quick phone call or something in Chinese. Michael however, stuck to this. We found out later, that even in the hospital, he still refused to speak Chinese, resulting in a translator needed for him. He could understand the doctors and nurses, but he spoke his replies back to them in English, who relayed it in Chinese. This must have been very frustrating for the medical healthcare officals there.
Today, we found out that he will need an operation to fix these two bones that will cost 30,000 RMB (about 4300 US). His workplace will pay for half of it, but the other half he is on his own for, so the students as well as the staff here have started a collection fund for him. When an AA went to visit him to bring him Get Well cards from his class, he made a short video using his digital camera that was to be played to the students here. The video was very short, and it was easy to see that he was very tired and clearly drugged up on painkillers, but he was determined to say that "You have a choice in every event. You can have a good attitude or a bad attitude. I choose to have a good attitude with this and if I were doing any better, I would be twins" Now that's a motivational topic.