Real Heroes Do Exist

I am a sports fan, so if you like sports, please read and think but if you do not enjoy sports, there is still something for you too, so please read and think about it…

I watched and listened to Mike & Mike early in the morning on ESPN. Their subject, in the early morning that day, was about the Baseball Hall of Fame. They seemed bedazzled by the selection process and how some could be chosen and others not.

Their rhetoric was based on the fact that some of those players who were on the ballot were those who used steroids or were thought to have used them and by doing so obtained a great advantage.

This seemed their dilemma in the selection process.

Pete Rose was a gambler and the rules for a player in the MLB are no gambling on games in the leagues… In his playing days he was a hero to many young men.

Then we have another athlete (hero) who plays golf, a tiger for sure. Mr. Woods plays great golf and had a sex appetite that created a terrible stir in this gentlemen’s game. He is a hero to many young men white or black.

A Mr. Michael Jordan also had a gambling appetite and much was said about that and even suggesting he too gambled on NBA games but that has gone away, like a stormy day… He is even today displayed as a hero to many young and older people

Pete Rose resisted admitting his problem, but finally came around to admitting he has a problem. Mr. Woods also admitted his problem and took appropriate steps to be cured.

Whether he is cured or not is never talked about anymore. Michael Jordan is ever discussed among those who are sports media pundits who claim him as the greatest NBA player EVER.

(That’s Questionable)

There are others who played in sports, Roger Clemens, Barry Bonds, Lance Armstrong, and the list is longer than my arm, who are still accused of enhancing through steroid use.

The list is almost in every sport, Baseball, Football, Basketball and others for sure. Football, baseball, basketball, heroes (TV created) who have been in serious situations with law enforcement and with their league rules are ever present today…

It appears we need to be clear what the word “hero” means and how the media glamorizes athletes to young men looking on televisions across this nation who might see a hero and may need one… The question is, what does it take to be a hero? Television can elevate people to hero status … and it does.

Is television the appropriate judge of who is a hero? They may not call a person a hero but the eventual product of great actions and a player performing great physical skill indicates heroism through the air waves.

People judge based upon their own rules, even if they have no right to judge. How many people can say they have done something great? Can anyone in this country say they have never done something stupid?

I have a good question.

Who is in God’s Hall of Fame? It is unfortunate that Television polarization of heroes and villains and makes it clear even to the youngest of fans how to see good heroes or bad ones…

If our Lord appreciates good basketball why would He not appreciate morality higher than physical skills? Would he not appreciate integrity higher than a batting average? Would he judge honesty higher than a field goal percentage?

When will we learn to keep men human and quit judging only those who are physically blessed as heroes or have lots of money? How many adults have heroes? If you have children, who do you want them to have as heroes, or do you want them to have heroes at all?

My mother died of cancer when she was only forty years old. She is my hero and was until I found the girl who would be my wife. We have been married fifty-seven years and we have no heroes only each other, family and good friends.

Everyday heroes go to work every day; they work when they are ill, and help others when they see another is in need…

Who is in your HALL OF FAME?

Robert D. Ashford
Robert D. Ashford was a Marine during the cold war and is now retired, after 50 years of construction management. He is a keen genealogist and loves humor. He watches the political horizons and likes to write commentary on what's next.