Blog 6 - HERO

I have been thinking about this question in my head, going through person after person trying to figure out who that one person I would anywhere would be. I really started to struggle with this question, and it got me thinking, What is a Hero anyway? What are certain qualities that make people willing to drop everything to follow someone anywhere? In class we have talked some about leaders, and 'Heroic leadership.' These heroes can be anyone from a religious leader like Ignatius to a Basketball coach like John Wooden or to a businessman like Bill Gates. It makes sense that this type of thought exercise would appear in the spiritual exercises. Ignatius wants us to be able to imagine giving everything up to follow someone on their mission like he did with Jesus. Imagining following a king or hero helps us to form an image in our minds of what that feeling or interaction might be like with God. I believe Ignatius would say that most if not all the attributes of valiant heroes and kings that cause people to want to follow them or traits that could be attributed to Jesus. The thing that all the leaders I mentioned have in common is that they all had a clear vision about what they wanted and they had the ability to lead and to inspire others not only to follow them, but for each person to fulfill their own individual potential and ultimately become a better person. For me personally, I would want to follow someone who led by example, who wasn't afraid to get their hands dirty and make tough decisions, who is never phased in the face of adversity. I guess more important than anything is the mission. You can be as charismatic as there is, but when it comes down to it, your mission is what inspires people. Ignatius saved souls and Steve jobs founded a billion dollar company. Those two types of leaders attract different sorts of people, but they are both accomplishments nonetheless. As for my Hero personally, I'm still at a loss. I suppose I could name people like Mahatma Gandhi or Martin Luther King or Mother Theresa, but I'm probably supposed to choose someone more modern and those are just cop out answers anyway. I find myself trying to say someone like Bill Gates who is not without his critics, but no one can deny the tremendous percentage of his wealth he has given to numerous charitable causes through the Bill Gates Foundation. He represents someone who could easily symbolize greed in society wanting to truly give back and make an impact on the world. I think that notion is important in a modern society where so many people see achieving wealth and power as the end all and be all of life. But still, I struggle with definitively saying I could follow anyone blindly into a cause. I feel like I need to be able to know someone and relate on a personal level to be able to make a commitment like that, but maybe that's just because I don't know myself well enough yet to identify any "heroic deed" I care strongly enough for to give up everything to pursue.