by Norman W Wilson, PhD
The celluloid and comic book heroes, while certainly stirring our fantasies, are fundamentally out of reach as role models. They are too strong or too crafty, or too attractive for us to identify with realistically. We create false heroes to compensate our own personal deficiencies, weaknesses, or foibles.
The playing fields of the various sports frequently provide temporary heroes. The young man or woman who at the last breathless second scores the winning point, or brings in the winning run. Local newspapers and media splash the news, bloggers blog it, and buzz goes up on Twitter, or YouTube. A policeman or fireman dies doing his job and there is a media frenzy—temporarily. As Shakespeare put it, it then "struts its hour upon the stage and heard no more." Muhammad Ali stated it beautifully when he was defeated by Frazier. He said, "Tomorrow you will be writing about someone else." And so we move on.
We lay out teddy bears, flowers, cards, and posters, poems, and written notes for total strangers when they are killed. We rally to establish special funds to help those left behind during their time of need. We publicly bleed all over the place. And we walk away, wiping a tear. All the time we harbor a secret, and heave a sigh of relief. After all we are not the ones dead.
But what is the underlying message? It is hope. We hope we can be strong in face of adversity, we hope that we can be successful, we hope for a better world. Mankind instinctively hopes for a better life. Parents hope their children have an easier life than they have had even though statistics belie that hope.
The Washington Post has recently reported (July, 2010) America's newest generation of young adults has the distinction of being the first to be less-educated than their parents. The United States has nose dived from first to 12th place among nations with the highest percentages of the 25-to-34 year olds with a postsecondary degree. (This was part of a report submitted to Congress).
Hope, we are told, springs eternal. And it does. But with that, a good dose of reality is needed.
Norman W Wison and his wife Suzanne are Camano Island residents. This essay used by permission from the author. His website is http://www.shamanicmysteries.com
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