Heroes

How cute is this?

My little nephew, Christopher, LOVES Spiderman. He knows the superhero theme song by heart, dressed up like him for Halloween, and other day started singing this song, we then proceeded to you tube the original cartoon video.

When I was 5, my super hero was Wonder Woman. I wanted to be her. Literally, I spun around and around hoping I too would become like her; truth lasso, invisible plane, visits to paradise, gold power cuffs...AWESOME!

The thing my heart seems to respond to in the mythic idea of a superhero is that they are conflicted: the hero has a hang-up. If they don't properly deal with the hang-up, they too become dangerously close to becoming a villain.

I think we all can be like a superhero, in our own special way, if we let the power of good transcend each one of our own uniquely designed threats of darkness. This requires great courage to enter into the hang-ups to learn from them. We must see how they are sabotaging the very goodness we were created for. Then, learn how to move into a new way of a living where we no longer shy away from offering the "powers" we were designed to bring into the Greater Story being told.

So maybe there was a bit more to my 5 year old little desire to be like Wonder Woman: an everyday woman with the power to bring justice, a story of transformation and redemption, a "lasso of truth" that calls forth truth, power cuffs that deflect firery arrows that threaten the work of Paradise.

I wonder if there's more than meets the eye to a lot of these childhood interests we find ourselves reflecting on.

And as I consider these stories going on underneath the Greater Story, I'll enjoy watching little Chris belting out "Spiderman, spiderman..." and continue to wonder,"Who is this little guy? And what will be his greater story to be lived out?"

So....who was your favorite superhero? And, perhaps, you might wanna ponder the question, WHY?