Day after day, it was Vincent Liu, a tennis racket, a ball, and a wall — plus the determination to play a game he had grown to love from the sidelines. The taunts? The pain of polio? He could block them out. There was only the wall, and his will. Bounce, swing, wait. Bounce, swing, wait. Bounce, swing, wait.
Liu, a Johns Hopkins Hospital nurse case manager, used that indomitable will, patience, and a huge heart to build a respected career in medicine and a profile as a USTA tennis player (ahem, he’s even got a sponsor) and coach of youngsters and adults. This despite what some would see as an unfair bounce of the ball. Liu saw no such thing: The ball bounces as it will; from there it is up to you.
We met with Vincent at a local tennis club for an “other lives” story for Johns Hopkins Nursing magazine about nurses who, aside from being great at their jobs, have passions outside work that show their breadth as people. We also hoped to get a photograph that captured the grace and playfulness of a man who believes the greatest strength one can have is to give back: to children, to younger players, and to teammates, whether on the hospital unit or the tennis court. And did we mention patience?
Pose, click, wait. Pose, click, wait. Pose, click, wait.
If you know already Vincent, lucky you. If not, let writer Danielle Kress and photographer Will Kirk introduce you.
Do you know other nurses who have overcome great difficulties or log odds? Or nurses who just have amazing stories to tell? Please share in the comments section below.
And thanks for reading.
– The Beat