Hey guys its been a while since I've been on, I've been busy with football and marching band. So please tell me, which heroes or superheroes (fictional or non-fictional) have been known to look up to. Mine personally, is Batman because of the story of Batman, or just the way he puts others before himself (most of the time, ok 50/50 or just 1/4 of the time).
While not much of a 'hero', per se, I definitely look up to one of my best friends. He's seen a lot of shit in his twenty-eight years of life. Gotta love the guy.
Don't know who I look up to besides my parents, some other family members, some of my close friends and I'd probably say my favourite teacher from when I was in school because he was inspirational. I do admire many people who are more famous though. Obviously there's Harvey Milk and all the of other LGBT rights activists be they LGBT or straight ally. But besides them I also have a lot of admiration for the work of scientists like Marie Curie, Charles Darwin, Frances Watson and James Crick. But in particular I love the genius that is Richard Dawkins and all the work he's done for genetics, as well as his tireless campaigning for a secular world that includes universal LGBT equal rights. As for other people I admire, I'd say Lady Gaga (the only one of those big divas that I can actually stand ironically), Emma Goldman the 20th Century anarchist, Katharine Hepburn the super-talented legendary actress who was famous for her radically liberal views, trailblazing feminism and refusal to play the Hollywood game and obviously those like Oscar Schindler and Irena Sendler who did so much to save people's lives that they put their own at risk. And my favourite superhero is Batman!
My mum is my one and only hero. She raised 2 sons as a single mother in the 70's and 80's at a time when no one knew what welfare was, the only way to own a house, pay the bills and raise kids was to do what every good mother should do, earn a living. She did it tough, but she did a bloody good job of it considering my brother was a delinquent and I was a recluse that was tortured by my sexuality and bullying. She is 68 now, she works at least 3 days a week and goes to the gym at least 3 times a week. She IS my only hero, and to put anyone else up there on the hero pedestal would only detract from the admiration she deserves. On the other hand, I also admire David Bowie enormously. He challenged society and I believe a lot of what he has done has changed the way that gays and lesbians are treated as well as gave life to characters that a lot of us can identify with and that made some of us feel a lot less lonely. The messages in his music are not obvious to us, and when they do become obvious, they can actually mean something different to everyone that hears the message because the message conveyed is one that suits all. Heroes is the song that I keep going back to because the message to me was that hope and belief in yourself know no boundaries and will never be contained within walls created by others, but others seem to think it is a protest about the Berlin Wall.
For historical heroes I'd have to say Joan of Arc, Sejong the Great, Queen Liliuokalani, and...Liam O'Brien. Joan of Arc has been my heroine since childhood, I've just always found her story inspiring (And St Joan/Guardian Angel Joan are still my favorite Yugioh cards. St Joan was even in the show (!) Serenity summons St. Joan (EPIC WIN!) - YouTube). Sejong was an amazing man, he was responsible for some incredible educational reform in Korea. He commissioned the Korean alphabet and saw to it that commoners received an education, which was certainly unheard of in Europe during that time. I admire Queen Liliuokalani a lot for what she tried to do, restore the Hawaiian Kingdom's power after American businessmen blackmailed her predecessor into ceding most of Hawaii's power to them. And...Liam O'Brien because he is a fantastic voice actor and the King of insane laughter, his work as Lezard Valeth, Grimoire Weiss, and Gaara is simply incredible. For fictional heroes, I'd say Katara from Avatar the Last Airbender; Cassie and Tobias from Animorphs; all the protagonists of Wheel of Time (Though Nynaeve and Perrin in particular); Yuna from FFX; Vanille from FFXIII; Terra and Celes from FFVI; Gardenia from the Reluctant Mage; Storm and Nightcrawler from Xmen; Luna Lovegood from Harry Potter; Hinata from Naruto; Sophitia and Talim from Soul Calibur; Valmur from Valkyrie Profile Covenant of the Plume. Basically I look up to people who are compassionate, idealistic, protective, determined, etc.
My mother, such a strong resiliant woman, and many other strong women I know, I love strong women. I also look up to many comic book, sci-fi, fantasy, anime/manga, video game heroes as well, too many to list but I'll say a few. Superman Ms. Marvel Mario Goku Flash Gordon Luke Skywalker Captain James T. Kirk
