My Hero
Chad
was my son’s friend, but he
was my hero. Why was he my
hero? For three reasons:
Chad
was independent when others in his circumstances would have been
anything but. My grandmother
had a ‘creeping paralysis’ before I was born.
She was never able to walk in my lifetime.
She was very dependent, and sometimes, demanding.
My mother cared for her for twenty years.
Mother told me after I was an adult that “Mamaw” never said
‘thank you’ to her in all those twenty years.
What a contrast that is with
Chad
!
That is humility.
Chad
was determined. He went to
college when many would have just taken the easy road of dependence.
He used the assets that God had given him, and didn’t give up,
even when he was faced with additional challenges such as mechanical
problems with his chair or van, or being laid up in the hospital with both
thigh bones broken. He just
kept on. That is faith.
Chad
had an outward focus. When you
talked with
Chad
, you might be on a wide variety
of subjects, but very seldom was the subject ‘
Chad
’.
He and my son, Ken, had a passion for sports.
They could, and did, talk for hours about stats and strategies.
He was knowledgeable about so many things, but some people are as
informed as he and still are inwardly focused.
They don’t usually have many friends.
Chad
was liked by so many because he
was an interesting individual. His
physical drawback didn’t enter the picture.
Chad
’s focus was also upward.
He was given grace by
our Lord because he was humble,
and his faith was increased
because he kept his eyes o Jesus, not on his circumstances.
Chad
was my hero.
Judy Smithart
February 28, 2004
Thanks
be to God!