My Hero

Joseph Campbell once said, “A hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself.” When I think of this term, my grandma comes to mind. She is not what most people think of when they think of heroes. People would typically think of heroes as people such as Martin Luther King Jr., Harriet Tubman, Abraham Lincoln, or Jesus. A true hero can even be someone who is not recognized or only saves a couple of people. It is not someone that wants to gain attention, does heroic things to get praise, or does it occasionally. A hero is someone that shows exemplary generosity, a great amount of sympathy, and an abundance of consideration. They strive to set an example of those in their everyday life; A hero’s job is never done.

Generosity -- In my eyes, that’s an extremely important quality to be a hero. It was a frosty winter day, and my grandma was out shopping for Christmas. With a cautious pace, she approached a homeless person who had only a t-shirt and shorts on, begging for food and money. Since these homeless people begging for money can occasionally be a scam, she hesitated. My grandma decided to continue on home and pray if God wanted her to do anything at all about it. After she prayed, she knew she should do something about this after all. My grandma went back out to where she saw him the first time and knew she was supposed to do something if she ran into him again. She saw him. She ended up buying him a jacket, gloves, hat, and a few other things to keep him bundled up in the frigid weather. That was probably the best gift he would receive that Christmas season. Another example of her generosity is that she takes over people's responsibilities, even if they don’t ask her. When my uncle is out of town, my grandma takes care of his cat. She takes time out of her own busy schedule to drive to his house, feed, and play with his cat, Alex. My grandma is one of the most generous people I know. She only thinks about other people, and spends all day -- everyday -- to serve other people and especially, Jesus Christ.

Another important quality a hero should have is to be sympathetic. When my dad had cancer, my grandma would call him every week, pray for him, and constantly check on him with a short but sweet text. Whenever he had chemo on Thursdays, she would be the first person to call right after it ended, and wanted to know all the news and everything that happened while he was getting the medicine. I remember this one time, when I got a grade on test that I wasn’t very satisfied with, my grandma sat me down and talked it through with me. She helped me understand that it’s ok to not get a great grade but to just try harder next time. Another time my grandma was sympathetic is whenever we go to her house, she always stocks it with our favorite snacks, drinks, and goodies. She makes sure we are as comfortable as can be! If our favorite candy is Haribo Gummy Bears, and our favorite drink is Coke, she will make sure we have it. She’s like a vending machine. Whatever we are looking for, she has it. If that’s not sympathetic and caring, then I don’t know what is.

The last thing I think a hero should be is considerate. Being considerate is not just picking up people's trash, or saying good morning. However, that is the first part. Being considerate is taking the extra step. My grandma definitely takes that ‘extra step’ in being considerate. Whenever we are at her house, she makes us breakfast, lunch, and dinner, every single day. She always has the breakfast ready and on the counter, before we even get out of the bed. My grandma also lets us have options; if we are feeling like cereal, she will have cereal for us, if we want pancakes, she will make us pancakes. Another considerate thing my grandma does is, randomly in the day or night, she will send us a text, asking us how we are doing. I occasionally wake up with one, and occasionally I go to sleep with a text from her.  If anyone in my life is considerate, it’s definitely her.

“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.” (John 13:34). If my hero has taught me anything, it’s to love one another, care for one another, and go that extra mile for one another. My grandma loves everyone for who they are. She doesn’t try to change them for the better, or for the worse. That’s another lesson I have learned. You shouldn't try to change someone so they could appeal to you more: you either like them for who they are, or you don’t. She put it into perspective for me that some people live a poor life -- like that homeless person she helped out. She also made me realize that we should be thankful for what we have, and help people out whenever we are able to. That women loves the Lord, strives to be a more solicitous, comforting and open-handed person every day. She has inspired me to live the same way.