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| Mattie and his mother, Jeni Stepanek |
"Every journey begins with but a small step. And every day is a chance for a new, small step in the right direction. Just follow your Heartsong." (Mattie Stepanek, Facing the Future, Heartsongs). This poem came from a poetry book that was written by a little boy who had the soul of an angel. His name was Matthew "Mattie" Joseph Thaddeus Stepanek and he suffered from a rare mitochondrial disease called Dysautonomic Mitochondrial Myopathy in which he inherited from his mother, who had already lost three children to the same disease. The only sibling Stepanek ever knew was his older brother, Jaime, who died when Stepanek was three. Jaime's death is what inspired him to start writing poetry. Stepanek called his poems heartsongs, "A heartsong doesn't have to be a song in your heart," he said. "It doesn't have to be talking about love and peace. It can just be your message. It can be your feeling"(Okura). He wrote seven poetry books. When Mattie was eleven he hit a rough patch in his health. He was doing so poorly that The Make a Wish Foundation granted him his three treasured wishes. 1) To publish his poetry books, 2) To go on The Oprah show to talk about his books, and 3) To talk to his idol Jimmy Carter, former president, and the ultimate peacemaker in Mattie Stepanek's eyes. Granting these wishes gained him millions of followers who believed in his inspirational message. His followers not only saw him as an inspiration but also as a hero because he possessed wisdom and fortitude, two traits all heroes must have. Even though Mattie Stepanek was fully aware that everyday he lived could be his last, he didn't live his life in fear or feel limited on what he could achieve. Stepanek managed to publish seven bestselling books before passing away at the age of thirteen in 2004. His poems encouraged others to stay strong during hard times. He spread messages of hope and peace and touched lives all over the world, making him a hero to many.
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| Mattie and his peace puppy/service dog, Micah |
Mattie Stepanek's exceptional sense of enlightened encouragement inspired all of his readers to make a change or a difference, even if it's small, to bring peace to the world. Stepanek believed that he survived so much longer than his siblings because his destiny was to spread a message of peace and joy and to encourage his readers to do the same. "Mattie envisioned a world at peace, and saw humanity as a 'mosaic of gifts, to nurture, to offer, to accept.' He said 'peace is possible' and that while ending war matters, 'peace begins within each person when we have our basic needs met.'"(Mattie JT Stepanek Foundation). Every person brings a different gift into the world but not everyone knows or accepts what his or her gift is. Some people use their gifts in ways that aren't beneficial to others or don't believe they have any gifts to bring. Once someone learns to accept themselves and the talents that they possess, they can find peace in their own life. In order to achieve peace as a whole, we have to accept ourselves and accept each other. Mattie Stepanek firmly believed that peace starts within oneself. In Stepanek's interview with Oprah Winfrey, he said, "That our attitude is a choice. I believe we can decide to be miserable, to roll ourselves in the dirt and say, "Hit me again." But when we do that, we're missing out on so much. I know for sure that while it's great to have role models, we should never try to be anyone but ourselves. I know for sure that when we use words, not bombs, we all get peace. I know for sure that there's something bigger than the here and now-some people call it God, some call it Buddha, some call it Yahweh. I know for sure that we don't need to be afraid of death because we'll be greeted by something better on the other side. And I know for sure that life is a gift to be treasured-and that we must always live it to the fullest." (The Oprah Magazine). He knew to embrace others differences and not judge them. Mattie Stepanek was a confirmed Catholic yet he supported other religious beliefs as well. Even though we all have different opinions we all share many of the same goals. Some people need to figure out that the way to happiness is not through hatred and fighting, it's through love and acceptance. His poems showed his readers how to embrace other cultures and beliefs.
Mattie Stepanek inspired people of all ages to find the bright side in every situation. He released a book shortly after the 9-11 tragedy took place and his poems gave Americans the strength that they needed to stay strong in such a rough time. "There is no denying that the national tragedy has boosted sales of Mattie's books, as more and more people turn to poetry for comfort. In December of 2001, people were buying five or six copies at a time and giving them as gifts. According to Cheryl Barnes, his publisher, 'People are saying, if this child can have this type of spirit in the position he's in, we can get through this.' Added Chris Cuomo, who interviewed Mattie for "Good Morning America," 'There's something about Mattie, about the life he's been given and about the words he writes. He gently coaxes people to believe in things they may have forgotten.'"(Biography Reference Center). People were saying that if Mattie could maintain this amount of faith while living with his illness then they can keep their faith as well. He taught Americans how to remain positive and to not forget the tragedy that occurred but to also not let the tragedy destroy them. They needed to believe that there was still some hope left in the world. That was a depressing time for our country and Stepanek's poetry showed a level of comfort that they couldn't acquire anywhere else. He knew more as a young, disabled boy than anyone else who was older and healthier. In the My Hero Guestbook, a fan wrote about how Mattie Stepanek changed her life. After seeing Mattie on the Oprah Winfrey Show, 81-year-old Elizabeth Haestie wrote: I "met" Mattie for the first time today on the Oprah show - I am an 81-year-old English lady, in good health, but sometimes feel somewhat depressed that I don't have a great many more years ahead of me in this life. But Mattie knocked all those feelings out of my mind altogether, and I don't think they will ever return. I am an "old soul" too, Mattie, as you are, and I shall remember you and your mother all the rest of my life. You are my hero, too"(Myhero.com). Mattie inspired people of all ages to keep living their lives to the fullest because you never know when it's going to end. As Ms. Haestie wrote, Mattie Stepanek had an old soul that was wise beyond his years. The reason Mattie Stepanek inspired so many people was because he was an unordinary boy with extraordinary opinions and his level of understanding of the world was remarkable.
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Mattie Stepanek was believed to have been an angel whose heartsongs were messages of God and the reason he lived so much longer than his siblings was so that he could share those messages with the world. In 2004 Stepanek made an appearance on The Oprah show, courtesy of Make a Wish to advertise his books. "When she first met the extraordinary boy, Oprah said she knew she was in the presence of a remarkable heart. 'I believe he was a prophet for our time', Oprah said... "He just happened to be dressed in little boy clothes.'"(Okura). Oprah compared Stepanek to a prophet, which according to Merriam-Webster's Dictionary is "a member of some religions who delivers messages that are believed to have come from God". No matter your faith or what you believe in, there is no denying that Mattie Stepanek was a special kid. He always made the choice to bring people together instead of separating them. He cared about others and was sensitive to their needs. Mattie set a great example for others to follow by the words he used and the actions he took. He Mattie was given the opportunity to meet his idol for being a peacemaker, Jimmy Carter. Carter gave a eulogy at Stepanek's funeral. " I always saw the dichotomy between Mattie as a child and with the characteristics and intelligence and awareness of an adult. Just as we see the dichotomy of Jesus Christ who was fully a human being at the same time as truly God. I would say that my final assessment is that Mattie was an angel. Someone said that to him once and he said, "No, no." He was very modest. But really in the New Testament language, angel and messenger are the same and there's no doubt that Mattie was an angel of God, a messenger of God"(The Carter Center). Anyone can be used to deliver a message but Mattie was a great communicator and people understood his comments well. He was aware that people trusted him and he was thoughtful in his words.
At such a young age Stepanek understood so much about the planet and he changed the life of anyone who read his heartsongs. Mattie Stepanek inspired millions, touched the hearts of anyone he came across, and created peace and joy to his readers. My mom bought Mattie's book Journey Through Heartsongs when little. She would read his poems to me all the time and the advice from his poems has stuck with me to this day. Mattie's poetry inspired me so much in times of struggle and pain because it taught me to stay positive. I always will remember, "We all have life storms, and when we get the rough times and we recover from them, we should celebrate how we got through it. No matter how bad it may seem, there's always something beautiful you can find"(Stepanek). That is one of my favorite Heartsongs because I believe it's something we all forget how to do. We look at hard times in our life and we remember the pain. In order to live a happier life we need to learn how to find the positive even in the darkest situation. Life can be rough but sooner or later you have to learn how to dance in the rain, and that's what Mattie Stepanek did, he danced in the rain.Page created on 4/3/2016 12:00:00 AM
Last edited 4/3/2016 12:00:00 AM
