[redwitch]

I hsve two heroes. One was not my hero when I was younger. As a matter of fact, I pretty much disregarded her as a person because she was so helpless to my mind. Looking back, I now understand just how brave she truly was.

The first hero was my father. I knew that he would always be there to protect me. He taught me that it was okay to be different; to treat everyone with respect; to accept people as they were, not as we would like them to be. He dropped out of high school to fight in WWII. He stayed in the military and ended up getting a Ph.D. in languages while serving. Our home was always open to anyone -- from the greats to the average to the well-below-par. He died much too young (36) after a harrowing battle with cancer (was given 3 months, lived 3 years). Even so, he fought with valor and honor.

My other hero was a woman who was very dependent -- she couldn't drive a car, didn't know how to write a check,, barely spoke English or any language but her native language. Even so, she was the only member of her family to survive a concentration camp (no, she wasn't Jewish but her family was anti-Hitler and Goebbels wanted the family estate). She went from extremely priviileged to liviing below the proverty line not once but twice. She managed to raise two children after her husband died while working jobs that were at best considered menial labor. She taught those children the value of having honor, pride, a need to do the right thing. I really didn't know it, but my mother was a hero in the true sense of the word.

So, thank you for giving me a chance to brag about two of the greatest people I've ever had the privilege of knowing. They truly were heroes in their own right, not just in the eyes of a child/woman who loved them.