Who Is Your Hero?

Who is your hero?

How do you define a hero?  The dictionary defines a hero as a man of distinguished courage or ability, admired for his brave deeds and noble qualities.  Sometimes the dictionary just doesn’t quite get it done. 

A short time ago, during a performance of Legends in Concert at Foxwoods the gentleman doing the Elvis impersonation had the lights turned up in the audience so that he could see us.  He asked all the military veterans to stand, and then the policemen and firemen to do so as well.  He then told the rest of the audience to look at those standing because they were the real heroes.

Gosh, that felt really good to stand there knowing that someone really appreciated the four years I spent in the Navy and the seven years in the Army National Guard.  The funny part about this is that most of us that serve our country don’t think of ourselves as heroes not even those who do heroic things.  If you had asked Audie Murphy if he was a hero what do you think he would have said?  Do you even know who he was?  (http://www.biography.com/people/audie-murphy-9418662)

I was in the Gales Ferry McDonalds a week or so ago and I asked the young man behind the counter if he knew who Audie Murphy was, he didn’t.  I then asked him if he knew who Alvin York was, he didn’t know that either.  When I asked him who Sponge Bob was he pointed to the picture of our yellow friend on the wall behind me.  At least I know who is famous at McDonalds. 

If you don’t know who the other two guys were, they were Medal of Honor recipients and two of the most highly decorated combat soldiers in our nation’s history.  I don’t know how much we spend on public education but I am sure it is more than enough so that we might learn who are national heroes were and what they did.

(http://www.biography.com/people/alvin-c-york-41029)

You know that fifteen minutes of fame thing people talk about?  It was originally coined by Andy Warhol in 1968 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/15_minutes_of_fame).  Well I think that it goes for being a hero too.  We all get to be a hero if we so choose.  Just like we all get to be famous for fifteen minutes.

I’ve already had my fifteen minutes.  There is a plaque in my living room that was given to me by the Post Office for saving a mailman from a couple of Pit Bulls that were trying to eat him.  It says “for your heroic actions” in chasing the dogs away.  At the time I didn’t think it was heroic, I just thought it was a good idea seeing that the dogs were doing their best to kill the poor guy.  Since I am not afraid of dogs and I had a framing hammer in my hand I didn’t think twice.  I just went after the dogs.  If they decided to eat me as well I would have simply killed them both.  In the end I knew that they would both end up dead anyway. 

My point is that most “heroes” don’t start out figuring that they are going to be a hero.  The things that they do are usually what they think are the right thing to do at the time.  A common thread in all of this is an individual’s lack of hesitation to sacrifice, weather it be their treasure or even their life for the sake of someone else.  They don’t expect fame or fortune.  They just want to do the right thing.

There is a song by Harry Chapin that says a little about this subject.  It’s called “The Rock”  (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vB23m0VxClk) and it’s the story of a hero.  It is just a song but in song we often find the truth that we don’t see even if it is right in front of us.  The hero of this song sacrifices his own life to save the town full of people that think he is daft.  Click on the link for the song because like most of Harry’s songs, it is worth listening to.

The song highlights another quality of a hero, they don’t concern themselves what others might think.  They do what they know is the right thing to do and don’t take opinion polls before doing it.  When a mother sacrifices her own wants and even needs to take care of her children some think that is foolish.  Yet there is no hero greater than a mother in the eyes of her children.  My wife has graduated to an elevated hero status, she is a hero to our grandchildren and she deserves the title.

When I think of a hero, I also think of my father who armed with a few hand tools and a pencil built a house for us to live in.  I think of my mother who took care of us kids when we were sick and when I was a teenager looking for work she helped me get my first part time job.  I think of my wife who would charge into any situation regardless of the danger to protect her family.  Heroes don’t all carry guns or fight in wars, although there are plenty of those types of hero to go around.

There isn’t a special school for heroes or some kind of government program to make you into a one.  It is strictly on the job training.  You can improve your chances of becoming a hero though.  The best way to do that is to make some changes that make the possibility of being a hero greater.  You know, try to develop some of the traits you see common in hero types.  It’s easier than trying to pass the test to become a fireman or a police officer.

Wait a minute!  I see a problem here already.  The whole deal would revolve around who you see as a hero!  This is more complicated than I originally thought it would be.  What if your hero is really a villain?  I’m going to have to take a leap of faith here and assume that your idea of a hero is not a villain.

Courage is one characteristic of a hero.  But what is courage?  It is the ability to face one’s fears with calm resolution.  That is a mouthful and it isn't the half of it.  I’ll bet you have all kinds of courage hiding out inside of you just waiting to show it self.  What did the Wizard give the lion who thought he was a coward?  I can tell you what he said to the lion.

“As for you my fine friend, you are a victim of disorganized thinking.  You are under the unfortunate delusion that simply because you run away from danger you have no courage.  You are confusing courage with wisdom.”

You should be aware of this simple fact; courage is not the absence of fear.  Fear is a good thing.  It is your personal danger detector.  Fear is why a deer runs from a mountain lion.  With out it he would be dinner.  Panic on the other hand is not good.  That is when your fear overpowers your courage.  Panic can get you killed. 

If you want to be a hero start at home and work up from there.  Not many of us will be in a situation where we can demonstrate to the world our heroic qualities.  You know what, that doesn’t amount to a hill of beans.  (I’ve always wondered what that saying meant!)  I can prove it.  I’ve been asking people who their heroes are.  Just have a look at the photos for this blog.  You will be surprised (or maybe not) at who their heroes are.  In fairness to Rick Koster, who gave me more heroes than the picture caption would allow, I would like to include them here.  They were his mom and dad, writers: James Lee Burke, Stephen King and Dan Jenkins, song writers: Neil Finn and Steve Wilson and anyone who works to rescue animals. 

Here is a special note just for Rick, I would be honored if some day I would be considered one of your favorite authors!! 

In the end most of us don’t look to the heroes that society picks to be our special heroes.  In the end we want our heroes to be much closer to home.  We want heroes that touch us in a way that an Audie Murphy or Alvin York can’t.  If you want to be a hero you can start by learning how to serve those around you.  Who better to start with than your own family?  You want instant hero status?  Try your children first.  Take a minute to look at this and see how a couple of dads have become heroes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jds1QZrJq1Y

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tzetq32VO_g&feature=relmfu

Some of us might not have children to be heroes to.  You are not off of the hook!  Just look around you.  My Daughter the school bus driver is a hero to most of the kids on her bus especially to her niece (my granddaughter) who rides that bus.  So forge ahead and become a hero.

In closing I would like to just add that even the greatest of heroes fall.  And when they do it is up to us, the less known heroes to help pick them up.  The job of Soldier On is to pick up those who have fallen the hardest and we can help them in that task.  Please visit my blog spot to see how you can help.  If you have a kindle you can borrow my book “Operation Armageddon” for free and I will donate a percentage of any royalties paid to me to that wonderful organization.  Thanks again and God Bless you all.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/?docId=1000739811

My Website: http://tagewright.blogspot.com/

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