You Could Be A Hero - Heroes Do What's Right

Song of the day: Superchic(k) - "Hero" - here is the chorus:
"You could be a hero - heroes do what's right
You could be a hero - you might save a life
You could be a hero - you could join the fight
For what's right, for what's right, for what's right"


As a new school year begins, there are a lot of new beginnings and new possibilities. There are new students, new teachers, new friends, new classes - new, new, new. Of course, there's always the old: the friend's we've had for years, the teacher's we've had once before, the lunch lady who we've known since the day we walked through the doors and seen every school day since - but it's the 'new' that is the most exciting.

The 'new' chance to change our path as the year moves forward or to continue strengthening what we have already built up in our lives.

It is with this idea of 'new beginnings', that I want to pull to mind a song by Superchic(k) entitled "Hero" (I encourage you to go to iTunes and buy the song or listen on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oNzYPqVPYQg).

This song mentions many small things that happen day to day - such as someone being picked on, a girl who is depressed, and a sibling who doesn't realize that his choices are being mimicked by his younger sibling. Although not everyone can relate to the stories mentioned in these verses, the point of the song can relate to everyone. It is saying that small choices can make a big impact on other people's lives around us.

Simply being kind to that person being picked on, reaching out to those who hurt around us, or living responsibly through our actions can truly change other people's lives.

As one of the verses says: "He can do what he wants because it's his right, The choices he makes change a nine-year-old's life." And I think that it is time that we truly reflect on our own actions - realizing that we have the right to "do what we want" - it's our free will given to us from God, but God asks us to rise above that, to give away our will to His will and to become "heroes" in this world and a light to others.

Think about it - think about someone you look up to and mimic - do they know that you look up to them? Or that you look to them for guidance? I know that while I was growing up I always looked up to my older brother - I always followed after his footsteps, and I was happy to let him go through life's events before me (graduation, college, etc), because then I had his experiences as a bookmark. I watched everything he did, and I watched his mistakes and how he said he could have avoided them. I watched, and he never knew how closely I was following him.

The person I am today is because my brother chose to make the right choices - on some level, he knew that I was watching, he knew that he had the chance to influence my life, and although I'm almost positive he didn't actually think I was listening to him - I was. It shows that even if people don't respond like they are listening, that doesn't mean that they are not.

In the end of it all, my brother is also the person that is responsible for my faith. He was the one that began searching and studying and reading, and now I have that desire within me to continue to deepen my own knowledge of my faith.

Who is in your life that you could possibly influence just through your actions? Who may be looking at your life and wondering how they can also deepen their own faith because they see the beauty and joy of how your faith is changing you?

As this year begins, continue to think about whose lives you may be changing through your actions - no matter how small these actions may be - and remember these two great phrases from this song:

"Heroes are made when you make a choice…"
"You could be a hero, heroes do what's right"

(Full lyrics here can be found here:
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/superchick/hero.html)