Life is one long constant battle. It drives us to countless conflicts and struggles that test our ability to stay in its unrelenting fight. Each and every step we take leads us to a new and challenging experience that teaches us valuable lessons. We will learn tremendous amounts of information from these experiences in which we better our knowledge of both the world around us and us as individuals. These are our footprints; the footprints of our life long journeys that guide us to our desired destination. We arrive at that destination once we have grown and learned from all our past experiences. Although we encounter many positive experiences on our journeys, like graduating high school or making the varsity sports team, we must also face negative obstacles, such as conquering an injury or discrimination. In order for us to reach our destination, we must face obstacles. We are not going to get where we’re going without obstacles; they teach us the most valuable information. If you haven’t noticed already, you’re not going to just come across gumdrops and lollipops, you’re going to face some sour fish too. And there's a reason for that. We learn the most when life gives us hardships, and we must face these hardships so that we can learn. We’re not just handed monstrous obstacles and challenges for the heck of it. They’re put in our path so that we can learn and strengthen ourselves. They are roadblocks, but roadblocks are meant to be overcome. Our destination is a product of our journey, and if we handle our journey well and have a positive outlook when life hands us obstacles, then we will be and we will do what we wish for ourselves.

When a person encounters a severe injury, they are indeed facing a large roadblock in their journey. But, they have two options: they can either hit the breaks on their journey and let their injury define them, or they can receive the best treatment out there in order to better themselves so that they can jump over this roadblock and dive head first into their dreams and desires. This is the path that many people take when they have an injury, and among those people is famous NFL pro-Rob Gronkowski. Gronkowski, age 26, had a major back injury that almost took away his football career, but his strength and determination persevered.

When Gronkowski was a junior at the University of Arizona, he suffered from a major back injury caused by deadlifting for the first time. In spring 2009 when spring practice ended, Gronkowski, who was one of the best tight ends in Division 1 college football, did not want to lose any momentum heading into the fall season so he went to the gym every other day or so to stay in shape. He trained there with his older brother Chris, who also played football at the school. During one trip together, they noticed all the other guys in the gym were deadlifting. Gronkowski had never deadlifted before, and as someone who loves exploring new things, especially those that are fitness related, he had to give them a try. Yet, instead of taking it easy and pacing himself like most people would when trying something new, he maxed out, going too heavy. On his last set, he felt something pop in his back. Not thinking anything of it, Gronkowski decided to persevere and finish lifting through the pain.

Through April and May, Gronkowski continued lifting and running. But by the time July rolled around, he was experiencing severe back pain that was causing the nerves in his legs to malfunction. His legs felt like they weighed 500 pounds each, which Gronkowski from jumping, running, and even walking.

After having an MRI of his back done, Gronkowski discovered he had badly ruptured a spinal disk that was damaging the surrounding nerves. Dr. Robert Watkins, a medical specialist in California, laid out a two-step approach for Gronkowski. The first step was to attend physical therapy to heal his spine, but if that didn’t work, he would then have to undergo surgery to remove the part of the disk that was sticking out into the nerves in his spinal cord. Yet, going through with the surgery would mean that if the nerves do not heal properly, he would permanently lose full use of his legs.  

Gronkowski’s career was on the line. Football has been Gronkowski’s biggest passion since an early age and losing it would be the biggest disappointment of his life. During this difficult time, he had to challenge himself and take risks if he really wanted to save his career. He looked at this challenge like he had been preparing for it his whole life. This was the biggest fight of his life. He learned from his father that everyone works hard, but in order to be a winner, you must be trained to pay attention to the details and perfect all the little things. And Gronkowski wanted to be a winner. When the 2009-2010 season started, Gronkowski had had enough of the shooting pain and numbness in his legs, and since the rehab was not working, he and his father took the scary risk of undergoing surgery. 

This was a huge risk for Gronkowski, but it was his only hope if he wanted to be back out on the field. During the first three weeks after surgery, he couldn’t do anything but walk to class and sit in a recliner. Any wrong move sent sharp pain up his spine and down his legs. He was supposed to be the best tight end in college football, but instead, he was facing the possibility that he might never have full use of his legs again.

Although the risk was dangerous, the surgery ended up being a success. Dr. Watkins said Gronkowski’s disk had healed perfectly and there were no longer any fragments in his spinal canal. This lead Gronkowski to his next crossroads: whether he should retire, stay in school and play football his senior year, or enter the 2010 NFL draft as a junior, which was Gronkowski’s dream. His decision had to be made by January 15, as that was the deadline for college juniors to declare for the draft.

As one would expect, Gronkowski decided to try out for the NFL draft. Though he lost his junior year of football and the full college experience, Gronkowski never lost his determination. Everything he had gone through changed him.When Dr. Watkins gave him the green light, he felt tougher and more determined to take on the NFL draft. 
During the draft, Gronkowski felt better than ever. The determination and confidence he exuded on the field, in addition to his outstanding athletic ability, caught the attention of the New England Patriots. The Patriots, led by Coach Belichick, drafted Rob Gronkowski in the 2nd round of the draft as draftee number 42. Of course, Gronkowski was super excited and would rank that moment as one the best moments of his life.

Now, 6 years later, Rob Gronkowski is soaring high as a member of the New England Patriots. He is one of the team’s standout players and is considered one of the best tight ends in the NFL. In the 2015 season alone, he made 11 touchdowns and 72 receptions. He had his all time best season in 2011, which was only his second season playing professionally, making 90 receptions and 17 touchdowns. In 2014, he and Quarterback Tom Brady lead the Patriots to their fourth Super Bowl Win, which Gronkowski was very proud of.

Rob Gronkowski, number 87, is an incredible attribute to the Patriots. He has put on a tremendous performance so far in his career which has drastically pushed the Patriots forward. Gronkowski has overcome his back injury, both physically and mentally and is now exactly where he wants to be in his life. He has had a couple other injuries since 2009, including a similar back injury in 2009 that cost him several games, but he got over it. He received the treatment he needed to move forward. His strength and determination were major contributions in those circumstances. Gronkowski’s achievements and successes are major stepping stones for him that have led him to his lifetime goal of being a professional football player. He did not allow his roadblock to stop him; he walked over it. And that has made all the difference.