The stadium goes
crazy when they see high school senior, Zach Hodskins, make a basket. Not only is
he a great basketball player, but he was born with out his left arm, which
makes the fact that he is a good basketball player even more incredible. In the
Upfront magazine the article, “The Natural” by Mike Tierney states that Zach’s
parents thought he would “have a better chance becoming president than playing
basketball for a college powerhouse.” This interesting and inspiring article
shows us that if you try your hardest you will make it, no matter what.
In the article it
says that Zach’s parents didn't want to treat him differently than his two
older sisters. I think that this is a great idea because it makes Zach feel
like a normal kid. Imagine getting treated differently just because of how you
look. The article also says Zach, “started playing basketball at age five with
is dad in the driveway. By third grade, he was hooked.” This shows us that from
age five to being a senior in college, he has been playing basketball, and
loving it. I can infer that that must have taken a lot of time and dedication. Also
he never gave up playing just because he was different than everyone else. In addition
this article provides us with a picture of Zach dunking a basketball, with a
clear view of his left side. I think it was a great idea to add this picture in
with the article. It makes the reader envision Zach’s life even more.
In addition the
article says that Zach has four million views on you tube, of a video of his basketball
highlights. This makes me wonder if a regular person with the same skill, but
who had a left arm, would be this popular as well. Or do people just find it
interesting because of his disability? What I don't like about this article is
the title, “The Natural”. It makes us think that Zach was born being a great
basketball player, when really he put a lot of time and effort into becoming
one.
After reading this
article it made me believe that anything can happen. It also made me want to
learn more about people who were born/lost one of their limbs. I can imagine
that it would be very difficult. Overall Zach Hodskins life must be very hard,
and it was interesting to learn about it.
