Everyone needs at least one hero................

As I was "doing time" on the treadmill last night (willing my mind to wander away from my labored breathing), my eyes came to rest on my Eeyore collection (that's right, the donkey from the Pooh storybooks), and that got me thinking about heros.

Yup! One of my hero's is a storybook character. How many of you just ask yourself "what has she been smoking?"...... Let me explain.

Pick up any Pooh video or storybook, and check out Eeyore. At first glance you might only note that Eeyore always seems gloommy and depressed, a "glass half empty" kinda guy. I used to see the same thing. One day while watching yet another Pooh video (Oh right! Like you don't watch Disney movies!), it occured to me that NO MATTER how sad and depressed Eeyore was he always showed up to lend a helping tail. That says a lot about his inner character, and I decided that I wanted to adopt that kind of attitude. I may not always know what to say to a friend in crisis, but (at the very least) I CAN be there to listen. I find that if I put forth the effort to show up, the rest takes care of itself. If my love ones decide to bury me (I have my funeral planned, but told them they could choose to bury or cremate me because I really didn't care what happens to my body after I am done with it. And yes,I am well aware that I will also be done with my body before the funeral. I will tell you why I have my funeral planned in another blog, another day.). Anyway, if I end up with a tombstone, I want it to be incribed "She showed up!" If I can earn the right to have this on my tombstone, then I figure I must have done some things right. Right?

Another hero that inspires me to be a better person is my son (refered to earlier as the joy portion of my pride and joy). If there is a better example of stick-to-it-ism, I have never met him/her/it.

My son has a learning disability, but he has choosen not to let him stop him from pusuing his goals and dreams. He has done this with a no nonsence attitude as well. When he was in third grade, his teacher ask him if he could tell her what time it was. He looked at the clock, and then looked back at her and simply stated "Nope! But I'm hoping to learn that this year too." How many of us would be brave enough to simply own up to our short comings instead of trying to cover them up and hide them.

When he was in high school, he played soccer in the positon of goalie. In his Senoir year, when it was time to move up to Varsity, his coach ask him to consider staying on the JV team because that was were he was most needed. Everyone knows that it is "way cooler" to be on Varsity then Junior Varsity, but my son made the choice to do what was best for the whole, rather than what might have been best for him as an individual. I don't think I was that mature in high school (maybe not even now). How about you?

I could go on and on with other examples, but I think I have made my point; The example my son sets, gives me something to stive for. This is my definition of a hero.

What is your definition? How do you pick your heros? Do you even have a hero? If it is someone in your everyday life, have you told them what they mean to you? Everyone wants to believe that they make a difference. To hear first hand that it is so, is one of the best gifts one can receive. So if you have (a hero), and you can (get in touch with them), give them this gift before your day is done and you will make both of your days.