Heroes. They come in all sizes, shapes, and salaries.
You and I love our heroes. In fact, you and I need heroes because they give us hope that life is more than we thought it might be.
Sports legends.
Warriors.
First responders.
Superstars.
Heroes of the faith.
Parents.
Wait. Who? Parents?
You work to the best of your ability in the daily grind of domestic affairs. This qualifies you as a hero. Think about it:
- Dishes need to be washed. Every day.
- Clothes get dirty. Every day.
- You and your family need to eat. Every day.
- Discipline is necessary. Every day.
- You have a job to do. Every day.
The ordinariness of life is where heroes exist.
My Daddy was my hero. He was always there for me when I needed him. He listened to me and taught me so many things. But most of all he was fun. Bindi Irwin
How would you describe your hero? Webster’s Dictionary defines a hero as:
“…any person…admired for courage, nobility, or exploits; any person…admired for qualities or achievements and regarded as an ideal or model….”
You might say it this way: A hero is one we look up to (Not the best grammatical sentence, but you get the point).
Most heroes never think of themselves as such. They are just doing what is in front of them to the best of their abilities. Florence Nightingale described a hero this way:
“I am of certain convinced that the greatest heroes are those who do their duty in the daily grind of domestic affairs whilst the world whirls as a maddening dreidel.”
Isn’t that an apt description of parenting? Fred Rogers, of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood said, “Anyone who does anything to help a child in his life is a hero to me.”
As parents, you and I don’t think our daily lives are heroic, but they are. True heroic acts are those that go unnoticed.
Consider these heroic acts:
- The always faithful spouse.
- The parent who continues to pray for the prodigal child who doesn’t call.
- The dad who comes home after a long, hard day of work and patiently practices soccer with his child.
- The mom who holds firm that homework must be done before enjoying any electronic games.
- The dad who teaches his son how to be a gentleman.
- The mom who wipes a runny nose for the 132nd time that day.
- The parent who chooses to save money for a family vacation instead of going out regularly with friends.
Yes, we love to idolize the heroic deeds that make headlines. But perhaps, the most heroic acts, the ones we should pay more attention to, are those that consistently occur in our homes every day.
Your children look up to you and that makes you a hero.
May you and I live in such a way to deserve that honor.
Who are your heroes and why? Leave a comment below. I’d love to hear your story.
Capture the extraordinary in the ordinary today.
Kirsten D. Samuel
Aftershock Recovery Coach
8-week Program, Custom-paced Coaching, Remote, or In-person Sessions
Thank you for this excellent post, Kirsten. We need reminders that greatness in the Kingdom comes through daily faithfulness and obedience, often in ordinary and seemingly unnoticed ways. … Maybe you could add godly bloggers to the list of heroes. 🙂 Blessings to you!
Thank you, Tami.