Frankie my ridiculous polydactyl cat is at it again. Here he stands, than gives a cute wave at you. Afterwards he stands all the way up before getting in his "normal" stand. Go Frankie. If this doesn't make you smile - I don't know what will.
Sunday, August 19, 2007
Saturday, August 18, 2007
No Heroes?
I am really sick and tired of people telling me that there are no more heroes left in the world.
It astonishes me when I hear people say this.
If you want to find a hero, you don't have to look any farther than Superman.
People say, Superman? He was a comic book character, not a hero.
And I say no.
I'm talking about the real Superman. I'm talking about the flesh and blood Superman who walked on this planet.
You didn't see him?
His name was Chris Reeve.
He was an actor. He started out playing Superman in the movies.
Then he actually became Superman.
Don't you recall? He was riding a horse. The horse threw him to the ground. He broke his neck. He was totally paralyzed.
Ironically, now he truly was the "man of steel", trapped in an iron lung.
At first, he did what most of us would do, he fell into total despair.
He wanted to commit suicide, but he didn't have the means to do it. Because not one single part of his body moved.
Then he saw the Light. He found the hero he played in the movies was still alive and well inside himself.
He decided he was going to move. The doctors said it was impossible.
Superman doesn't worry about what is possible.
Using what could only be described as "super human" willpower, move he did.
To the doctors shock and disbelief.
They were even more shocked when he started breathing on his own, freeing the "man of steel" from the iron lung.
It was the mental equivalent of "bending steel with your bare hands".
Once he was finally able to communicate through his paralysis what did he do.
Bitch and moan about how unfair life is?
No way!
He had to get to work fighting for truth and justice.
Because that is what Superman does.
After experiencing the mind-boggling life of being totally dependent on other human beings, he used his position of being a celebrity to fight for the rights of those in similar positions as him.
And fight he did, from his wheelchair and still mostly paralyzed. Raising awareness and millions of dollars to help others.
As if being in his physical state alone wasn't enough of a cross to bear, he had to help thousands of others to bear their crosses as well.
He went on TV and talk shows. That enabled him to spread his message all over the world using the airwaves. With those airwaves he could easily "leap tall buildings in a single bound".
He went on stage and acted. He directed.
He flew and traveled extensively to carry his message all over the country.
He always had a beautiful smile and was joyous in public. Never complained about his situation.
Despite dire warnings, he pushed himself way beyond what anyone in his health should have to help those like him.
His unstoppable passion was "more powerful than a locomotive".
He held in his heart his cherished goal of standing on his own 2 legs again. He believed for certain he would.
He never did reach that goal before ascending from his body.
But he really didn't need to.
Because he already stood way taller than most anyone else on this planet.
So please don't tell me there are no heroes.
Because when you do you I'll say.
Look! Up in the sky. It's a bird. It's a plane.
No, It's Superman.
PS: Even though Chris is gone he still fights "the never ending battle for truth and justice" through his legacy.
He and his wife opened a center in the United States devoted to teaching paralyzed people to live more independently in Short Hills, New Jersey on May 3, 2002.
Known as the Christopher and Dana Reeve Paralysis Resource Center, the facility operates a website, publishes Paralysis Resource Guide and houses the largest U.S. collection of paralysis-related publications.
The Reeve Family Foundation has also distributed grants to paralysis researchers totaling some $22 million.
It astonishes me when I hear people say this.
If you want to find a hero, you don't have to look any farther than Superman.
People say, Superman? He was a comic book character, not a hero.
And I say no.
I'm talking about the real Superman. I'm talking about the flesh and blood Superman who walked on this planet.
You didn't see him?
His name was Chris Reeve.
He was an actor. He started out playing Superman in the movies.
Then he actually became Superman.
Don't you recall? He was riding a horse. The horse threw him to the ground. He broke his neck. He was totally paralyzed.
Ironically, now he truly was the "man of steel", trapped in an iron lung.
At first, he did what most of us would do, he fell into total despair.
He wanted to commit suicide, but he didn't have the means to do it. Because not one single part of his body moved.
Then he saw the Light. He found the hero he played in the movies was still alive and well inside himself.
He decided he was going to move. The doctors said it was impossible.
Superman doesn't worry about what is possible.
Using what could only be described as "super human" willpower, move he did.
To the doctors shock and disbelief.
They were even more shocked when he started breathing on his own, freeing the "man of steel" from the iron lung.
It was the mental equivalent of "bending steel with your bare hands".
Once he was finally able to communicate through his paralysis what did he do.
Bitch and moan about how unfair life is?
No way!
He had to get to work fighting for truth and justice.
Because that is what Superman does.
After experiencing the mind-boggling life of being totally dependent on other human beings, he used his position of being a celebrity to fight for the rights of those in similar positions as him.
And fight he did, from his wheelchair and still mostly paralyzed. Raising awareness and millions of dollars to help others.
As if being in his physical state alone wasn't enough of a cross to bear, he had to help thousands of others to bear their crosses as well.
He went on TV and talk shows. That enabled him to spread his message all over the world using the airwaves. With those airwaves he could easily "leap tall buildings in a single bound".
He went on stage and acted. He directed.
He flew and traveled extensively to carry his message all over the country.
He always had a beautiful smile and was joyous in public. Never complained about his situation.
Despite dire warnings, he pushed himself way beyond what anyone in his health should have to help those like him.
His unstoppable passion was "more powerful than a locomotive".
He held in his heart his cherished goal of standing on his own 2 legs again. He believed for certain he would.
He never did reach that goal before ascending from his body.
But he really didn't need to.
Because he already stood way taller than most anyone else on this planet.
So please don't tell me there are no heroes.
Because when you do you I'll say.
Look! Up in the sky. It's a bird. It's a plane.
No, It's Superman.
PS: Even though Chris is gone he still fights "the never ending battle for truth and justice" through his legacy.
He and his wife opened a center in the United States devoted to teaching paralyzed people to live more independently in Short Hills, New Jersey on May 3, 2002.
Known as the Christopher and Dana Reeve Paralysis Resource Center, the facility operates a website, publishes Paralysis Resource Guide and houses the largest U.S. collection of paralysis-related publications.
The Reeve Family Foundation has also distributed grants to paralysis researchers totaling some $22 million.
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