Louis Zamperini: A Positive Role Model

Life is hard. No one can deny that. People can wish and hope and pray for their troubles to go away, but all anyone can really do is get through them. Everyone in the world is on their own life’s journey, growing and learning from mistakes, loving and hoping, and striving for success unique to each individual. Louis Zamperini is one man who remained resilient throughout all the hardships he had to face, but it wasn’t always easy for him. It is through his triumphs over his tough times that he became an admirable role model for anyone experiencing difficulties. He displayed the honorable traits that all humans are inherently capable of if they dig deep enough within themselves. Louie Zamperini survived the harsh conditions of the Pacific Ocean

Injuring his ankle again during training for the 1948 Olympics, ruining his chances of racing, had been the last straw for Louie and he turned to drinking. The nightmares of “the Bird”, his captor and main source of abuse as a POW, had gotten so bad where he reached the point of hurting others in his sleep and in flashbacks. His motivation to get a job and stop drinking were virtually nonexistent, until his wife, Cynthia, and some friends relentlessly encouraged him to go to a sermon by a man named Billy Graham. For Louie, reuniting with God had helped him turn his life around. Others may have to take a different route, but there is always something that can help pull people out of their anguish. Bad times don’t last forever, it just takes some patience, optimism, hope, and determination to get through them. Making peace with what happened to him helped Louie’s nightmares to cease and allowed him to visit Japan, offering forgiveness to those that mistreated him. Displaying self-discipline to change, as well as the pure, liberating act of forgiving others, is something anyone is capable of; Louie’s portrayal of this proves his much deserved status as a role