Webster's Dictionary defines the word 'hero' as: "a person who, in the opinion of others, has heroic qualities or has performed a heroic act and is regarded as a model or ideal."
Many disputes have been waged over the definition of a modern hero. Many have denied that the common service member is worthy of this title, while many have praised these very same individuals as the standard by which the title is set.
With today being Memorial Day, I thought I'd take a personal look at this debate and weigh in on how I feel about it.
I do not see myself as a hero. I did nothing specifically valorous or heroic on either of my deployments. Situations in which I was tested, required to act, and engage in any sort of battle or pursuit, did not strike me as extraordinary or exemplary. I did my job, I did it as well as I could, and I came home. I was not directly responsible for any great acts of heroism, no lives were saved because of my direct actions, and I was not, fortunately, responsible for directly ending the lives of any adversaries. Why, then, do so many people consider me, and the many like me who have enlisted, a hero?
I have made the claims that I do not feel heroic. I have said plainly that I am not a man of valor. I have a great desire to hold that status, a great love for those who have held it before me, and a great reverence for the stalwart, unwavering devotion to duty and country that these men and women who I feel have earned the title embody. I have said this clearly, and have been told I am wrong. I have been told that simply by enlisting, I've earned the title. But how? Signing a piece of paper? That was heroic? Making a commitment, was that valorous? I didn't see it.
Not until I looked more deeply at that definition; at the final few words. "...is regarded as a model or idea." I was blown away when I actually allowed myself to see and understand these words.
Regarded as a model or ideal.
I immediately understood that heroism isn't wading into a firefight. Heroism isn't always pulling people out of a burning building. Heroism isn't always single-handedly taking down Alan Rickman and his skyscraper full of hostage-taking, thieving terrorists barefoot. Heroism is being an embodiment of an ideal. Heroism is standing for something, having the courage to stand for something, that others may shy or balk from.
Every service member, Army, Air Force, Marines, Navy, Coast Guard, etc., has made that decision. Every policeman, every firefighter, every medical professional, everyone that has decided to dedicate their life to the betterment of society, for the protection of their way of life, and to the service of their fellow man, THIS is the embodiment of an ideal. This ideal is selfless service. This ideal is courage. This ideal is loyalty and duty.
So how do I finally accept the title of hero, how may I finally believe that in some small part, a decision I made has allowed me to obtain a status I have revered since childhood. Am I a special forces operator risking my life to keep terrorism at bay, across the world, away from my loved ones? No. They are the heroes that have earned that title for their courageous and valorous deeds. Am I a firefighter who bravely kicks in the door to a burning building, races into the flames, unaware of how structurally sound the building is, or whether it could collapse at any moment, simply to rescue the terrified children inside? No. Those are heroes who have earned the title for bravery and selflessness in deeds.
But I stood for an ideal. I stood up, I signed a line. I made a commitment. I have lived that commitment for almost 11 years. I will continue to live that commitment as long as I am able. I stand as a model for those ideals. I do what many people will not.
Maybe I might just be a hero.
On a day where we honor those before us, it's easy to focus so much on the past, and the groundwork they've laid for us, that we forget those that continue that tradition. What would their sacrifice be worth if we didn't honor it with service? With continuing the dedication and honor they gave their lives to preserve?
Do not forget the fallen. Do not fail to understand the sacrifice they've made, but also do not go forward without honoring it. Thank a soldier. Thank an airman. Thank a sailor and a marine. Thank them for being models of an ideal. Thank them for carrying the banner their fallen predecessors have passed on. Honor the memory of those who have passed by honoring the service of those who continue to.
And then, we can all rightly feel like heroes.
