CM - Blog 1 :)

It has been a hectic few weeks for me, to build a picture of how busy it has been in one 24 hour period, let me explain. I was filmed walking my dog, then I drove to Wrexham to be shown around a prison, to then drive back to Manchester where I sat in a ‘dungeon’ to be filmed talking about rugby and all aspects surrounding it until 9pm. In another 24 hour period I ate pizza, drank coffee, met a tonne of people, ultimately the big event on that day was playing in a semi-final, we got too big for our boots and lost the game. So yeah, that’s just a glimpse of what I get up to in an average 24 hours. What I didn’t mention is a do this whilst battling a brain that sometimes, doesn’t let me speak, tells me to quit my job and go home because I think I am failing at my job and doesn’t let sleep due to having nightmares.   As I write this, I’m sitting in the Manchester sun on my laptop, overlooking the perfect green fields from the balcony, coffee in hand, and it dawned on me… what have I to write about? I have decided to write this blog based on the fact I have a story which isn’t like the usual tabloid story, the one where they write about the veteran who was kicked out of the Army because we went to war and got hurt. I won’t go on about how the Army abandoned me, which is what a large proportion of ex-service personnel who write these things do. What I will be doing, is telling you of the challenges I face, the people I meet and how two years ago I made a deal to try and help the ex-service personnel community using the power of sport. How the Army have backed me and how I get it done, or should I say attempt to get it done. I won’t give you the gore and guts, if you want that, I would recommend that you come to my event ‘Battlefield to the Rugby Field’ at Sale FC, Corpaq Stadium, formally known as Heywood Road on 29th April 7pm, I am biased, but I have been told, I do a good gig!   I have found myself in the sporting world since 2013, more so since 2016. Infact maybe sooner than that. As I spoke to Help for Heroes Team last weekend I realise, I am in fact one of the original sport recovery athletes. That is pretty cool if I do say so myself. If you hear how I managed to get here, the guy that throws a ball around for Bowden and England Deaf, (without much backing, a lot of doubting, some self-doubt and idiots scattered everywhere), you would be amazed. I will tell you about my sporting journey another day, but for now let’s talk charity. No I’m not going to shake a tin, I am going to tell you about Sharks Community Trust, because on paper, I am a charity worker. I work for Sharks Community Trust, the charitable arm of Sale Sharks, (the professional Rugby Union team in Manchester), we operate right across the North West and I work primarily within the Sharks Forces programme, the Trust’s ex-service personnel programme. I will go back to the question, why blog? Why now? Well, I am being challenged at work to talk about what I do, bang the drum and blow the trumpet. I have struggled to do this since I started, but since September we had a staff restructure and I have been pushed, in a really good way, to be more arrogant about the good stuff that I do, which up until then, I was pretty rubbish at. We have this motto in the office about ‘changing lives’ and I firmly buy into this, I see the quality work my colleagues do, and they see what I do, and that is meaningful to me. I find it difficult to bang the drum and blow the trumpet, but I am seeing the purpose and it works well with the deal I made; to try and help the ex-service personnel community using the power of sport. Every week I complete some sort of media surrounding who I am, what I do and the challenges that I face every single day. The biggest struggle within my media duties is not just what is going to come at me, or what question am I going to wriggle to answer but how am I today. I was injured in Afghanistan, suffering hearing loss, PTSD and a traumatic brain injury. Everyday I wake up and I face a struggle to do little things that the average person takes for granted. If I had of lost a limb, I would fully know what I am waking up to deal with every day, but with my brain injury your guess is as good as mine. I am blogging to show you a little bit of me without giving you the full story. I will show you that it doesn’t matter what card you are dealt, never give up without a fight and how you are not defined by an injury or disability. It’s a chapter of my life that has led me into a world of drama, excitement and competition. For now, please await the drop of my second blog ‘From challenge comes opportunity’. CM