Hero.

One of my elderly clients has seen and done many things in his life. During a session, we started talking about the big earthquake of 1989. I was only 3 when it happened, but I remember it very clearly. I was watching Super Mario when the tv started snowing. I was upset because I liked my Italian plumbers. As things started shaking and falling, I kept trying to figure out what was wrong with the tv. That shows where my priorities are. My uncle suddenly swept me up and moved me to dining room away from falling objects.

On the other side of the bay, my client had just gotten off work and was driving home. He had entered the freeway when the bridge started collapsing. Stopping his car, he got out and tried to stop others from continuing only to plummet to their deaths. He told me that one car didn't stop and the driver fell to his death. People were angry at him because they didn't understand why he was stopping them and turning them around. They thought he was crazy.

But you know what? He was a hero. He saved them. Even more amazing is that he didn't think about his own life as cars drove toward him at freeway speed. He thought about others. So what is a hero? A hero is someone who is selfless and willing to sacrifice himself for the good of others. I told him he was a hero that day and thanked him for what he did on behalf of those I did not know.

It's kind of cool I got to talk to a hero. It's kind of cool that he is teaching me things and I him. And that anyone can be a hero. You can be a hero and do what's right. Still, being a hero is usually a thankless job with no glory involved. In a way, the choices we make to help others or to help ourselves determines what we want to be.

[It is only because we were made in His image that we could even have this quality in humanity. It is only because of His grace that we can try again each day. Hmmm...]