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Laddie by Gene Stratton-Porter
...None of the rest of the  neighbours seem over friendly to me, an' I've told Josiah many's the time, that I didn't care a rap if they wa'n't, so long as I had you.  Says I, "Josiah, to my way of thinkin', she is top crust in this neighbourhood, and I'm on the safe side apin' her ways clost as possible.'"
    "I'll gladly help you all I can," said my mother.
    "Thanky!" said Mrs. Freshett.  "I knowed you would.  Josiah he says to me, "Don't you be apin' nobody.'  'Josiah,' says I, 'it takes a pretty smart woman in this world to realize what she doesn't know.  Now I know what I know, well enough, but all I know is like to keep me an' my children in a log cabin an' on log cabin ways to the end of our time.  You ain't even got the remains of the cabin you started in for a cow shed.' Says I, 'Josiah, Miss Stanton knows how to get out of a cabin an' into a grand  big palace, fit fur a queen woman.  She's a ridin' in a shinin' kerridge, 'stid of a spring wagon.  She goes abroad dressed so's you men all stand starin' like cabbage heads.  All hern go to church, an' Sunday-school, an' college, an' come out on the top of the heap.  She does jest what I'd like to if I knowed how.  And she ain't come-uppety one morsel.'

Heroes.  Heroes are the people we admire, those whom we desire to emulate, those who inspire and lift us on our daily walk.  Who are our heroes for Life?

In Laddie, Mr. Freshett didn't want his wife to be "apin' nobody".  Stand on your own two feet and be yourself by not imitating others.  Independence means independently learning only through personal trial and error.  Nonsense.

Admiring some characteristics and abhorring others is part of the human experience.  Association with others causes either an acceptance of behavior and thought or a willful and difficult rejection of that same behavior and ideas.  It is difficult to stay in the middle of the road for very long.  Whether good or evil, either you embrace, tolerate or walk away.

Mrs. Freshett was wise in choosing her hero.  She was comfortable not "apin" anybody except for one woman.  She didn't care much for her association with her other neighbors but she relished her friendship with Mrs. Stanton.  Her hero was a woman who had lifted herself and her family out of the roughness of settlers and into elegant and comfortable living.  As had other neighbors.  What set Mrs. Stanton apart was that, "She does jest what I'd like to if I knowed how.  And she ain't come-uppety one morsel."

It isn't enough to admire somebody's assent in the business world, or in social standing or in fashion.  If that is the end of our ideal than our own end will be frivolous.  It is the finer qualities that make a true hero.  One who has compassion, who loves unconditionally and is humble.  The person who is courageous and wise.  It is one thing to be brave and ignorant but another to have courage and the wisdom to know what is truly worth standing against.  The man who is generous with his abundance, never looking back with regret for his kindness.  The woman who is tender amid great personal sacrifice.  The person who is faithful even in the agony of grief.  These are the heroes who will lift us beyond our current capacity.  Who by the power of example alone can bring us to discover the strength to walk a little further, work a little harder and love a little deeper.

We find heroes that stay with us all of our lives.  Fathers, mothers, mentors and friends whose presence in our lives shape us and continue to influence us every day of our existence.

We are often surprised by a fleeting hero.  A passage in a book, a story of courage, a word of comfort can bring this Momentary Hero into our lives at that very instant when we need something extra.  A smile, a laughter, a vision of innocence and goodness can fill our heart and take us a step closer to perfect joy.

Heroes are chosen by association and observation.  May we all choose wisely and make it a habit to allow those hero moments to enrich our lives.  Someday we will discover that we have grown into somebody else's hero.  And our Lord will embrace us for bringing another soul into His light.