As a young writer, I idolized journalists like Molly Ivins and Art Buchwald, whose words were so funny and sharp that their targets hardly knew what hit them. I was inspired by Julia Child, who didn’t take her first cooking class until she was 37 and then literally wrote the book on French cuisine and practically created the genre of TV cooking shows. When I saw Geraldine Ferraro debate then VP George H.W. Bush (and win!), I realized how brave she was to take on the establishment and how far we had to go.
They were all heroes, sans capes.
Lately, many members of society have been recognized as Pandemic Heroes: Healthcare providers, postal service employees, teachers, grocery workers. All of these folks have shown bravery, determination, a dedication to service. Unquestionably heroic and deserving of admiration and appreciation. Worthy of Hero status without a doubt.
But there are dreadfully few real-world heroes to inspire us these days.
It's far too easy to be led astray by the promise of power, a classic hero's journey plot point: The lead character must choose between a life of truth and righteousness or a life of deception and lies. It's often hard to tell the good guys from the bad just from the color of their hats anymore.
It used to be that politicians made a point of being deal makers and collaborators with those across the aisle. Now they tout their ability to shut another party down in any way they have to, even if it means repeating a lie (in this case, The Big Lie) enough times to even convince themselves.
Perhaps the saddest thing about this lack of heroism by elected officials is that it attracts future generations of entitled, narcissistic racists who care far less about the constitution than they do about their ability to hurt anyone who dares to be less wealthy or lucky or who may disagree with them on any particular issue.
But perhaps Heroes can still come to save us.