By Craig
Ruvere
Growing up in the early 1980’s, I remember being
fascinated by fictional superheroes that seemed to possess extraordinary
magical powers and strength.
Some of my favorites included Batman, Spider-Man,
He-Man and The Incredible Hulk to name a few. I remember spending countless
hours in my basement or out in the backyard, re-enacting sequences I had seen
on television with my tiny toy action figures. And when I was done playing with
my molded plastic heroes, it was my turn to jump and run around as though I actually
possessed some sort of super-human abilities.
Ah the imagination of a child certainly does run wild.
I guess
for a shy, sensitive and overweight young boy,
who was often teased at
school, the life of a superhero was something I envied and held close to my
heart. They were always there in my mind, like an old friend, providing me with a much needed dose of courage and strength when the
bullies on the playground needed someone to taunt.
But I’m an adult now,
and it’s been a long time since I’ve given any thought to my superhero friends
from the past. That was until I came across the following headline on a popular
news site.
The
headline read simply “Fireman dresses as Spider-Man to rescue boy.”
The
story occurred in Bangkok, and focused on a young 11-year-old boy who suffered
from autism. As with any child suffering from his disorder, changes
are often very difficult to adjust to. When a new school year arrived the young
boy was riddled with anxiety and fear.
In an effort to run away from the situation at hand,
he climbed out onto a third floor balcony – dangling his feet over the edge, completely
unaware of the danger he was putting himself in.
Both his
teachers and his frantic mother tried repeatedly
to coax the young boy back inside unsuccessfully.
This prompted a call to local firefighter, Somchai Yoosabai.
“He was
nervous about the first day at school, and he was asking for his mother,”
Somchai said. “He cried and refused to let any of us get close to him.”
Thankfully
Somchai overheard a conversation between the boy’s mother and his teachers saying how much
he loved superheroes - especially Spider-Man. It was at
that moment when Somchai
remembered he kept a Spider-Man costume back at the station, which he often used to hold youngster’s
attention whenever
visiting schools.
After a
quick costume change, he
reappeared in the superhero’s attire. “I told him Spider-Man is here to save
you. No monster will hurt you now. Then I told him to walk slowly toward me. I
was very nervous that he might have slipped if he got too excited and ran.”
But to
everyone’s delight, the young boy, eyes still filled with tears, smiled and
started slowly towards his favorite superhero before jumping safely into his
arms.
Amazing how Spider-Man,
without the help of special effects or computer generation, was actual able to stand proudly atop a building and
come to someone’s rescue. I’m sure it’s
a moment Somchai and that little boy will not soon forget.
I guess
no matter your age, we all want to feel safe
– to take solace in the fact that someone’s looking out for us. Giving us courage and strength when we feel
defeated –
showering us with compassion
and understanding when we feel discriminated against.
Superheroes
come in all shapes and sizes. For that little boy on the balcony, he looked a
lot like Spider-Man. But for many of us, they probably look a lot like
the people we have the great pleasure of knowing each and every day.
