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Uncle No

by Craig from New London

In this world many people are dubbed heroes. Some people's heroes are super heroes from comics, idols that can never be real, yet they still admire them for their qualities. Some people's heroes are movie stars, directors, or musicians--real people that do something that they can connect to or like. For others, real heroes are family members, people who work hard, always give and rarely receive, and look out for the good of others; these are people that everyone can be like if they truly want it. For me, my hero is my mother's brother in-law, my uncle. He is a humble, devoted man who I admire above all other people.

My uncle is an ordinary man living in Thailand with one wife and three children. He is a shift worker, working long and hard hours in the day and in the night. He works for the Lay's Potato Chip Company and makes the aluminum wrappers for chips and other goods. Sometimes he gets home early in the morning, sometimes mid afternoon, and other times, he gets home late at night towards the midnight hour.

Uncle is not a big man; he has a smaller figure with muscle to it. His face is tanned with aged wrinkles on his forehead from working hard for all of his life. He is not rich and he is not poor, but he is happy and content. My uncle spends all the time that he can with his children. The moment he is home he finds his son, Met, and his daughter, Beam, gives them both hugs, kisses, and asks how they are. I remember playing soccer with Met when Uncle No came home. Met immediately stopped playing and ran over to his father and just sat with him for a few moments. His father then pointed over in my direction and said something in Thai that I can only presume meant to "go play with your cousin."

Though my uncle lives an ordinary life he is in fact an extraordinary person. It starts with the way he lives. My Uncle lives in a small room with his wife and three children in the middle of a loud, noisy, polluted city. The room is about one and a half times the size of the typical cadet room, about fifteen by twenty-feet. The floor has no carpet and is completely covered in hard cold linoleum. This room is the kitchen, the bathroom, and the living quarters. They sleep on the floor with no beds, no mattresses, no box springs, only sleeping bags and blankets. In addition to his wife and children, his niece also sleeps with them and is under their care. Under these given circumstances most anyone would be despondent and miserable, but not my uncle. He makes the best of every situation by giving it his all. The first thing that I saw when I entered their house were all of the puzzles that their son, Met, had completed and they framed and hung on the wall. On the floor was another puzzle Uncle No bought Met that was half way completed. Uncle No never entered the house while we were in there, and when we asked him why he stayed outside he said that he was embarrassed. This brought a tear to my whole family; we told him that he had nothing to be embarrassed about and he should be proud of what he has and the amount that he does for his children and family. This simple act of showing his humbleness had a great impact on me. I realized that my uncle is not just a regular person, he is a man who selflessly devotes himself to those he loves.

In addition to his unyielding devotion and caring for his family, he is a hero for the amount he does for everyone. Three years ago my family and I traveled to Thailand to visit our family members living over there. This was the first time that my father, sister, and I had met Uncle No, and it had been years since my mother had seen him. Despite the fact that we did not know him very well, he was as friendly as if we had lived together for our entire lives. He drove us everywhere we went in Thailand; he missed work to show us Thailand, and he made himself available at all cost. There was one rainy day when Uncle No drove my family, Nong Met, Nong, Jep, and Nong Beam to a beautiful and serene area where their were numerous waterfalls and trees everywhere. It was at least a two-hour drive to the falls. We left around mid morning and got back late in the evening. I remember that immediately after we got back he went in and got ready to go to the midnight shift. A mere few minutes after that he was on his way to work. He returned early the next morning, went to bed, and then proceeded to take my family and myself on another trip. This man did all that he could to assist everyone, which is a rare trait in today's world. Uncle No is truly a man who devotes himself fully to those who he loved and cared about.

I could name many people in my life who I admire: my father, my mother, my grandfather, grandmother, and friends, nearly anyone who has left an impact on my life. Though I have known all of these people the majority of my life, the man I consider my hero is one whom I only knew for just under two weeks. He is a man who lives over fifteen thousand miles away from the place I call home. He is a man whom I may never see again, but I will always strive to maintain his level of caring, love, and devotion. My hero is Uncle No.

Page created on 1/11/2007 5:30:39 PM

Last edited 1/11/2007 5:30:39 PM

The beliefs, viewpoints and opinions expressed in this hero submission on the website are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the beliefs, viewpoints and opinions of The MY HERO Project and its staff.