Are you or do you know someone who is an unsung hero?

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

There’s a lot of them out there, man and women, who perform heroic acts and somehow never manage to get noticed. They’re the ones who will dive into a burning car and pull the occupant to safety yet go unnoticed while the press are interviewing the firemen, the cops and the victim and will slip quietly off into the dark. They are the ones who will work in a dangerous condition to get the job done and protect their coworkers and not even get a ‘good job’ out of the boss. They are the ones who will put their car between a careening drunk and a car full of kids and take the hit to protect them, and sit there while the kids drive off. These heroes will jump to the aide of a woman being beaten by a thief and chase him off to return and find the woman gone and no one there even to give them a nod.

Know people like these? I do. I know a guy who slid under a woman’s burning car with a $6 fire extinguisher and put the engine fire out before the fire department came, and drove off without anyone even trying to find out his name or thank him. The same guy, when an orderly in a local hospital, crashed through the barricaded door of a patients room where another patient, burned out on LSD, had gone wild, was rampaging, had opened the oxygen flow and was tearing the place up. He was tall and skinny and was no match for the guy inside but his job was to protect the other patient inside and his staff - so he went through the door just like in an old movie, grabbed the maniac in a wrestling hold by the neck and got him away from the door. The stunned maniac lifted him right off of the floor and was running towards a wall with him when another man arrived and stopped him. Between the two of them they contained the patient, shut off the oxygen port and secured the room. HE KNEW going in that he was no match for the maniac alone, but he did what he had to do.
That took guts. His employers never even acknowledged his bravery.

How many more unsung heros are there, out there?

What? Me worry?’

2

Rainbowcsr, I know someone who, to me, is a true hero. He occasionally posts here, so I won’t embarrass him by naming him, but he has saved my life, and more than once.

The first time was many years ago, when I was a scared, frightened, depressed teenager. He once invited me to a party, and then later took me home, and spent the entire night convincing me that I was a beautiful, worthwhile, human being who deserved to be loved. What he doesn’t know is that I had been contemplating suicide that week, I was so down on myself, so lost in my own world of pain and confusion, that I thought that I had no other way out. He showed me another way, and I am here today because of him, and his love and caring for me. The other time was only a few weeks ago, again, I found myself drowning in depression, so lost in what I perceived to be my life, I was almost totally incapable of finding a way back into the light. I wasn’t thinking suicide then, but I was drowning, and no one to throw me a lifejacket and show me a way out. He came along, and has spent a considerable amount of time, showing me who I truly am inside, and that there is always light at the end of the tunnel, and it’s not always an oncoming train. Once again, I owe him my life. And, he would not take any praise for this, nor would he appreciate me telling his name to anyone. So, my dearest, beloved friend, thank you for giving me back my life, and for loving me, when I was SURE I was unlovable. He has shown me the true meaning of unconditional love.

You sing in my consciousness like a counterpoint to my life.
L.L.

3

The timliness of this topic is remarkable, for it is something that has been on my heart and in my head for the better part of the last week. (I’m not horn-tooting here, merely relating a life changing experience, if you will)

On March 18, 2000 some friends and I were hiking at Gardon of the Gods Wilderness area in Southern Illinois (If you haven’t been there, check it out!), taking some pictures for a class project, and pretty much just not caring about anything that we had left behind at school.

We had been there about two hours when we caught wind of a rumor stating that there had been someone who had fallen off of one of the cliffs that the area is famous for. I so badly wanted it to be a rumor, but as it turns out, it wasn’t. But, to be sure, I set out to the base of the cliffs with one other member of our group.

On the way down, another hiker was scrambling up to go fetch a cell phone. A few hurried questions confirmed the rumor, for the guy was in the injured’s party.

Anyway, to make a very long story a little shorter, the young lady sent me a card early this week thanking me and crediting my actions with saving her life (In her letter, she told me that the EMT had told her grandmother that if it hadn’t been for my actions she had a good chance of going into severe shock and dying within the next 45 mins). There wasn’t much that I could do when I got to her side, other than cover her up with my (and the rest of my group’s) extra clothing and blankets and keeping her talking and coherent while we waited the 45-60 mins for the EMS to get there.

I am having a huge struggle in how to deal with this certain situation, for I know that I shouldn’t be prideful about this, or anything for that matter, but it is extremely difficult since the story made our school paper’s front page (courtesy of one of my friend’s girlfriend who wrote of our experience for a class project).

I am, however, doing my best to give full credit to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for preparing me to deal with this. My former Boy Scout training, Red Cross First Aid training, as well as crisis situation management skills that I’ve learned as a resident assistant prepared me perfectly.

And, to top it all off, I had planed this day-trip three weeks prior, just ‘happened’ to take extra clothes, water, first aid kit, another girl in my group just ‘happened’ to brink a blanket. If I hadn’t recently changed my major to one requiring this certain class, with whick I was doing a project for, I would never have been at the park that day and Brandie from Mill Shoals, Ill. may no longer be with us.

Praise God for His plan and His perfect timing.

“If we submit everything to reason, our religion will have no mysterious or supernatural element. If we offend the principles of reason, our religion will be absurd and ridiculous.” Blaise Pascal

4

Linney, our wondrous and awesome God does indeed work in mysterious ways to perform his wonder. To quote from a book I just read by Og Mandino “…God very often plays man. God will do nothing without man and whenever He works a miracle it is always done through man.” ‘The Greatest Miracle in the World’ by Og Mandino, pg 18.

You have the right of it, His plan and His perfect timing. Thank God for using you to be His hand in that situation.

You sing in my consciousness like a counterpoint to my life.
L.L.

5

When I stay up all night with a depressed friend (as has happened a few more times than I would like), or when they keep me from doing something incredibly stupid when I am feeling suicidal myself (as has also happened a few more times than I’d have liked), that’s not a miracle. It’s not something to take pride in. It’s just being a good friend.

Now, when a beautiful, slightly drunk, and horny girl who is locked out of her apartment comes to me and asks if she can stay the night in my bed (as happened last night), that’s a miracle. :slight_smile: As is the fact that I didn’t try anything.

6

A friend of mine is an unsung hero because when I was young and stupid, I stood up for another young and stupid guy who was being bullied by the school thug. The thug promptly decided that I was a better target and offered to thoroughly beat my brains in after school and I was just getting ready to accept when my friend stepped in, challenged the thug and was accepted. Had I accepted, I would have gotten thoroughly stomped. As it was, my quiet and nice, though large friend, who I had never, ever known to fight anyone, trounced the thug thoroughly and stunned me.

I never forgot that, though, years later I could have used him again to protect me from myself when I rescued a noncombatant friend from a couple of drunks, who then selected me as a target and proceeded to rearrange my face.

What? Me worry?’

7

Fear no more. The unsung heroes have been sung about.

Warning: shameless Rush plug ahead!!

The lyrics to Rush’s Nobody’s Hero: http://www.ruralamerica.net/~lisaann/rush/nohero.htm

Coldfire
Voted Poster Most Likely To Post Drunk

"You know how complex women are"

  • Neil Peart, Rush (1993)
8

My Chief… Not only does he keep our country safe, he wipes my every tear. The days sometimes are almost unbearable. Being bi-polar makes it even worse. I know there are some out there that understand. I do my best each day to make the ones I love happy, but sometimes I feel like I make thing worse. My Chief is my hero, my lover, my friend…

Girlbysea (AKA: ChiefScott’s GBS)

9

…my joker, my smoker, my midnight toker.

Voted Best Sport
And narrowly averted the despised moniker Smiley Master

Forward deployed until 18AUG00

10

All of us have, or will, survive the death of a loved one. When we see no point in continuing our lives, we persevere. All of us have, or will, face what seems to be insurmountable adversity but we persevere and overcome that adversity. Some of us have debilitating medical conditions but we persevere and do the best we can.

We stand beside family and friends when no one else will. We give our time, money, and love to people who take our giving for granted and do not say thanks. The lists of unsung, thankless performances are endless.

I think we are ALL unsung heroes if only because we survive and persevere in life.

Crystalguy

11

I suppose that is true of most of us, Crystalguy, however it has been many years since I have felt like a hero at all, unsung or otherwise. I have, like Linney, been placed in a position to do some good on occasion, God has kindly used me to do His work; but I would not call myself a hero.

GBS, I see that he did read it, my friend, and I am convinced more than ever of his love for you. You are so special to all of us here on this board, and to no one more special than ChiefScott. Rest in that love, and hold onto our hands, we’ll get you through this time.

You sing in my consciousness like a counterpoint to my life.
L.L.

12

purplebear & hon –

I’m assuming you guys are e-mailing each other now!? Well, blow me down and shit in my shoe!
I knew** sumpin’ **was goin’ on…

13

hehehehe!!

You sing in my consciousness like a counterpoint to my life.
L.L.