Tribute to Hero

HERO is my firstborn child. From day one, he was the most amazing creation we had ever witnessed and we knew we had been blessed with a most beautiful gift from God. His arrival was a little rocky, but he hung in there and proved himself a real trooper!

Our little Hero was a very busy guy. He was always on the go and always wanting to know everything about anything. He was "all boy!" This term can mean different things for different boys. Sometimes his busy-ness would get him into trouble. He would run everywhere...with no regard for anything in his way. We had to replace a few lamps, some dishes and some small pieces of furniture.

He would act impulsively, which made us always on our guard. Once, we were at a backyard party when he thought it would be cool to jump into the middle of a jacuzzi. He was two years old. There were adults all around, even in the jacuzzi. It happend so fast, that no one realized he was even in the water. I watched in horror as the whole event took place in slow motion. My cousin, who was standing next to the jacuzzi, saw him go in and immediately jumped in after him. She pulled him to the surface and lifted him over the side. It took me a few minutes to get my very pregnant body over to him. I just held him tight and thanked God for allowing me this second chance.


When his little brother, Rock, came along, he became the best big brother anyone could ever want. He showed Rock the ropes, trained him in the "busy" way, and played interpreter for Rock, who only spoke Klingon. (Rock had a little speech problem...an underdeveloped muscle in his tongue...which made his words come out sounding nothing remotely close to what he was trying to say.) But, Hero knew what was up and he made sure that we knew, too!

Hero has always been a happy guy, even when times weren't so happy for him. When his first case of poison oak hit, he suffered for a whole week before we had a handle on it. His smile and happy disposition never left him. Croup was another visitor, who came often, but Hero stood fast and fought back. He wasn't going to let anything keep him down! Of course, there were the bicycle and skate disasters, the T-ball wild pitches that found their way to his upper body, and the brutal soccer collisions. We dodged so many bullets with this kid!

He grew into a handsome teenager and found that sports offered him a good outlet for stress and taught him a great lesson about teamwork. In high school, he played football and ran track. He went to every dance that the school held. (I should have just bought him a tux, but he was still growing!) He started working at a local pizza parlor, the aroma of which he wore home each night. We nicknamed him "Cheeseboy" since we could smell him coming up the driveway after work.

He met the first love of his life through the youth group at church. When he left for college, she still had two more years of high school. They decided it would be best to stay friends, and leave the door open for other opportunities. This was so very difficult for Hero to do. My heart broke into pieces as he agonized over what he knew was inevitable. After six months or so, he was fine and back playing video games with other vidiots from around the country. He took a job at a local pizza parlor (sound familiar?) in the town where his college is located. He has now met the last love of his life. He still smells like cheese when he comes home!

He graduated from college this year with an interdisciplinary degree that includes Sociology, Anthropology and Political Science. He has learned to work with many different types of people...dead or alive...plumbers or politicians. I'm so very proud of this guy, I could scream!

My Hero is my pride and joy! I get goosebumps thinking of the adventures that await him as he paves his way to adulthood. I'm so grateful that I was picked to be his mom, and blessed to have shared so many unforgettable moments with him.

God bless you HERO!