Does America Still Have Heroes?

We live in tumultuous times. Ever since the day I was born, our great country seemed to me a land full of struggle. When I look back upon my life, it is very is easy to see periods marked by significant events occurring at the time; Tragedies like the Beslan hostage crisis, Hurricane Katrina, the World Trade Center disaster, seem to occur on a regular basis. Every time we tune into the news, we're assaulted with bad news. Our country, it seems, is in a time of ever increasing struggle.

The current state of our great nation doesn't seem to be improving much. In fact, I would wager to say that it may be going downhill quite fast. We're in the middle of a war with no apparent end, and our economy is going down the toilet faster than the wedding ring of a wife who just discovered her husband's infidelity. In light of our struggles, are there still those that survive and rise above their personal challenges? Are there still people who strive to overcome hardship and better our country, even if their contributions go unnoticed? Does America still have heroes? I believe it does.

If you feel so inclined, you can look up the word hero in a dictionary, it will you give you a number of definitions for the word, but only one seems accurate enough to be worth discussion. That definition is one who shows great courage. I find that I have a slight objection to defining a hero in that manner. It's very close, but as they say in the old country, it's no cigar. In my eyes a hero is not merely a person who shows courage, but one who does so in the face of adversity. It's one thing to be thought courageous, it is another to actually be tested and display courage.

So where do we look to find the heroes in America, and who are they? If recent box office figures are the authority, then Batman, Spiderman, and Iron Man seem to be doing pretty well. Other heroes like The Flea and Quailman, let's just say they've fallen upon some hard times. Our nation's superheroes play their own role and can be considered heroes and inspirations in their own right. Even though some would disagree, there is no way that they can sufficiently substitute themselves for our country's real heroes, the everyday heroes that are all around us.

The most obvious heroes of today's are our men and women in uniform. I believe that potentially sacrificing one's self for the safety and freedom of strangers is one of the most heroic acts possible. Serving our country in the military is a selfless and valiant act and should be treated as such. I don't think that our troops are given the respect they deserve by our people. Our soldiers are disrespected even further by their own government, who would choose to view them as expendable, but that's a topic for another time.

Moving down the obvious scale, we find ourselves in the domain of our nation's public servants. Our brave and noble firefighters, policeman, teachers and emergency workers. People who would kick in the door to a burning building and rush in as if they were a fat man at a Krispy Kreme. People who spend their lives giving an education to future generations so that they have an opportunity to be better than we were. Without them our society would fall apart. As much as we dislike our police force at times, especially when they're giving tickets, they do a tough job. It takes a lot of heroism to work in that field. Risking your life to save that of others is definitely a qualification for being a hero. Even our doctors and nurses who don't risk their lives, but dedicate them to the safety and well being of others are heroic.

The last group of heroes that I want to talk about is the American people. I think that the majority of our population continues to carry on even in the midst of all the difficulties we face. I think that everyone from the college student who is forced to take loans to be able to pay his or her tuition, to the couple who chooses to have children and continue the human race even in our economic state, is courageous. We're all going through a time of trial right now and as long as we all stay strong through it and do what we can to improve ourselves and our great country, then we are all heroes.