With every 9/11 that passes for the past 13 years, we’re struck by the heroics of so many people…people who, most typically, never knew one another before that day.  There’s no shortage of gripping stories from that day…and the images…I confess, I really can’t look at too many of the images for what it conjures up in my own psyche.

It was only a couple of years before 9/11 that I sat in my living room floor, glued to the TV for hours, watching a tragedy that mostly only graduates of my undergrad understood.  Given what we see in our headlines these days, our tragedy that cost 12 fellow Aggies their lives pales in comparison to the terrorism that a handful of campuses around the US have experienced – but still, it was very real to me, having spent time working on Bonfire myself.  Images of heroes – aged anywhere from 18 to 60 and on up, male and female, with all the colors bleeding into one – were all over the screen as students, faculty, residents of the community, etc., all came together to unravel this giant log-pile in an effort to uncover every body buried in that stack.

Fast forward to 9/11 and literally months of newscasts to follow would report on one heroic story after another.  Just this past week, I read the story of Lieutenant Heather Penney, an F-16 fighter pilot, who’d been given an order to take down the 4th jet that had headed toward the Capitol that morning.  The thing about it was…there were no armed fighters that morning, and arming an F-16 would take a minimum of an hour.  So her mission was heroic in more ways than one – she’d been given an order to become a kamikaze pilot.  But as the story would unfold, there were 33 passengers and 7 crew on board flight 93 that morning that will forever be remembered as heroes – as they took it upon themselves to take the plane down well off-target, and well-away from any populous areas.

*****

This week is always a heavy week…for millions of us across this country and abroad.  But truth be told, these stories were only rumbling around inside of me when I sat down for dinner with my kiddos the other night – and stumbled across the reason why I felt compelled to write tonight.

I’ve made mention before of our nightly routine.  It probably doesn’t make my mom proud, but my version of family dinner is throwing together whatever I can that I think the kids will actually consume, getting it all served up…and…sinfully, I’m sure…we all take our spots on the couch and recliner in the den to watch a DVR episode of Modern Family while we have dinner.  Oh sure…it’s not perfect.  It’s not around the table with the TV off and all of us talking about our days until we’re all well-informed – but it works for us, and almost without fail, it gets us all laughing before we jump into our nightly routine.

This past week was an episode from Season 4 titled “My Hero”.  To be honest, I didn’t catch the title until after the episode completed, and I only did so in order to quote it on this blog.  True to form, the episode weaved in and out of 3 simultaneous stories – all of which kept us laughing.  But the sneaky thing about the writing in this show is that they somehow manage to pop you at the end with the feel-good moment – even after laughing at some typically-off-color humor throughout the show.  This night was no different.  At the climax of chaos, things resolve into the typical family harmony when Manny, the step-son of the elder member of the cast, reads from his class assignment on heroes:

What qualifies someone as a hero?  Obviously a hero has to be someone we respect; a person we look up to; a person who is generous of spirit; who’s willing to grow and learn.  Maybe it’s the person you love most in the world; or the guy who makes the most out of life no matter what anyone thinks.  For me though, the hero in my family…IS my family.  Because of who we are together.

I tell you what…I hate when this show brings a tear to my eyes…and it happens more often than I care to admit.

But I’m going to expand on Manny’s summary just a bit.  Over the years – 40+ years of trying to figure things out, and the past few years of getting my crash-course in Life 101, I’ve made friends with many whom I consider heroes.  Heck, if you’re reading this, chances are very good you’re one of ’em.  Why?  Simple…I’ve learned a lot about respecting the hand I’ve been dealt, rather than complaining about it.  I look up to almost everyone for their ability to get out of bed every day and keep on going on their own journeys to make the most of life.

I can also admit that I used to privately shun those who’d say their kids were their heroes…I just didn’t get it.  Well, I’m here to tell you I was wrong on that front.  In fact, I very much look to my two kiddos as heroes.  They’ve dealt with their challenges with grace and approach each day with that childlike faith that everything is going to be ok.

I’ve always said that it was around 2005 or 2006 when I was bit by the bug to write, but truth be told, that bug bit me 13 years ago after 9/11.  I sat down at my computer writing a love letter to my daughter.  I was so scared of what had just happened to our protected little world…and I knew I needed to capture my thoughts so she’d have something to go on years after I’m gone.  It was 2 days later that my little 10-month old earned “hero” status in my book.  We were on a walk and had been working with her on baby-sign language.  Because we lived on the flight path for DFW Airport, we saw PLENTY of airplanes on our walks so along with “milk”, “poop”, “eat”, and “more”, we taught her the sign for “airplane”. We’d been teaching her for at least 6 weeks with no real noticeable connection…until that second day of air traffic grounding when she turned around in her stroller, and with those sweet, inquisitive eyes, she held up her right hand in the sign of an airplane as if to ask where they were.  Since that very day, she’s been my hero.

I’ve written plenty on how my son earned his hero status.  And Manny had it right when he said his hero was his family because of who they were together…the same holds true of my family.  And gang, if I haven’t told you enough lately, I think you’re all heroes.  Brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers, in-laws, out-laws, nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles and so on…all of you are heroes in my book.  I’m proud to be one of you – even those one or two that have earned “crazy” status.  😉

Who are your heroes?  Do they know they’re your hero?  Take a minute to let them know…it couldn’t hurt – and it may just be the silver-lining they need on a rather grey day.

Best to you and yours,
To all my heroes,

Tim