Who Will Raise Tomorrow’s Heroes?
The Dallas Morning News recently wrote an article about teachers who no longer ask their students, âWho are your heroes?â Too many students fail to come up with any true heroes as their answer. Boys typically reply with the name of someone who has fame or money or who excels in sports. Add in âgood looksâ and you have the girlsâ list. Kids donât want to imitate them â they just want fame, money, and beauty.
The good news is that many young people identify their grandparents as heroes as well. The difference is that a grandparent can be a real hero. The ones they identify from television or the cinema are not. As grandparents, you have survived what life has thrown at you and grandchildren instinctively know this even if they donât know the details of your battles.
Standard Dictionary Definitions
Hero: one regarded as a model; a person of outstanding moral character or one who has performed an act of great courage.
Courage: the mental or moral strength to face and withstand danger, fear or difficulty.
You might think you donât qualify as a hero. After all, you arenât Ulysses or Joan of Arc. Fortunately, the world doesnât run on great heroes; it runs on little heroes: men and women who do what is noble, just, courageous and true â every day of their lives. Even more important, it runs on visible, tangible, ongoing heroes. They are the ones who inspire todayâs little heroes to desire to be tomorrowâs big heroes.
We need grandparents who encourage tomorrowâs heroes, both small and great.Â
For Discussion: What stories can you tell your grandchildren about their parents that reveal their heroic and courageous qualities.
For Action: Tell your grandchildren one of those stories the next time you see them. By doing this, you win twice â honoring your own children and helping your grandkids to have models of courage in a dangerous world.
This article by Mike Shaughnessy is excerpted from Grandly, copyright © 2024 by Grandly Missions, Inc.
Image credits:
Top photo of grandfather with three boys o a hike, from Bigstock.com, © by Stu99, stock photo ID: 340055923. Used with permission.
Lower photo of grandparents greeting two children with their dad, from Bigstock.com, © by nd3000, stock photo ID: 438241520. Used with permission.
Mike Shaughnessy is a lifelong member of the Servants of the Word, an international ecumenical brotherhood of men living single for the Lord. He is a prolific writer. He has written extensively about youth work and currently leads Grandly, a ministry helping grandparents pass on their faith to their grandchildren. He lives in Lansing, Michigan USA.