heroes
Kim has a great post about the lack of visible heroism in our society.
He’s dead nuts on, too. We have no Lindbergs, we have no DiMaggios, no Sultan of Swat.
Publicly, anyway.
I believe those people are there- because I know a lot of them. I carried my uncle Calvin to a hole in the ground a mere few years ago. Calvin did the same thing a hundred thousand other soldiers did, so he wasn’t unusual, but he was damned sure a hero.
Heroism isn’t always about grand gestures and huge accomplisments. Heroism isn’t always writ large.
Sometimes heroism is just about doing the million little things that need to be done. Public attention is focused on the flashy and grand, the obvious acts of heroism.
More heroic, in my mind, are the steadfast. The people who do what they do, no matter how much drudgery is involved, every day. The people who keep on fighting the good fight in simple ways that nobody notices.
It’s not unusual to be brave and courageous when your adrenaline is pumping. If you volunteer at a hospital, and your gig involves cleaning bedpans all day, every day, tell me it isn’t more heroic to get up in the morning, every day for thirty years, knowing what you have to do, and doing it anyway.
That strength, the strength to keep on when keeping on is almost impossible, getting up and doing the same thing every day, is the strength I find to be most heroic, impresses me the most.
THere is another hero, that is equally overlooked, and most often maligned. The hero of ideas. The man who stands for morality and decency and freedom, and does everything he can to let other people hear his message, even if the tallest platform he can find is an upturned bucket.
You, Kim, are a hero. We need more like you.
10 comments Og | Uncategorized
Absolutely. Fabulous post, Og.
I read it and respectfully disagree.
There are plenty of heros out there.
Honestly? I can’t kick the dirt without stirring one up.
Trust me. I know several of them.
Google Jason Hamill.
I spent a several hours with his widow last week chatting about a few things.
That’s one tough woman who’s had to put up with some terrible things.
Not only is she a hero and one tough lady, but she was married to one.
Indeed, Dick, my point exactly. There are a lot of heroes all around us.
You, having been one of Mrs bennings Boys, are one yourself.
I read his post and came here to find your words… clear and wise, again, both of you.
I, too, think there are a lot of heroes out there. However, very few are publicized or recognized in the media. That part is what is sadly lacking in today’s society.
Don’t sell yourself short, either, og.
If what you’ve posted here is even vaguely close to the man you are (and I suspect you err on the side of humility far more often than not), you more than qualify.
You’re exactly the sort of hero that the MSM will crawl over broken glass to avoid talking about – the quiet, gentle person who helps those in need without fanfare, never asking anything in return except to go forth and help others.
I humbly add you to your list.
Thank you! {gushes}
Both of you. Dammit. I meant the good bloggers in GENERAL. And you, Vman, are one of the best.
Jim (me) talks the talk and that’s about it. He has used his gigantic brain to criticise the work of others and has not accomplished a thing himself, outside of whining about how others are superior to him. He is a fat, sanctimonious moron that can can hardly walk the walk.
Please mail me at sirfredrickjames@hotmail.com and remind me what an ass I am.
And be sure to ban the IP of my mom’s computer, as well.
24.65.76.24
Dang, Jimmy just can’t get enough. Pity he’s such a coward he won’t post except way down the page and in an old post. What a fucking coward. No wonder Exxon keeps him in outer sibera.