Human

    Tomorrow, in case you missed it, is the Super Bowl. Naturally there are many articles covering and discussing the event. Several of the articles have focused on Baltimore linebacker (defensive player) Ray Lewis who will retire this year.
  Many of the articles discuss the question of what sort of legacy Mr. Lewis will leave. To some he is a great athlete and a leader on his team. He gets his team fired up every Sunday and even when he was out with an injury could be seen stalking the sidelines offering encouragement and acting as a cheerleader of the guys in the field.
   To others he is the guy charged with murder who eventually turned on his friends to save himself. A man who has refused to come clean and be honest about what happened during that bar fight 13 years ago. A man who is hiding behind a veil of faked piety.
   A few weeks ago we heard about Lance Armstrong. Mr. Armstrong won the Tour de France, a cycling event, seven times. He was considered an champion and a role model. He was diagnosed with testicular cancer at a young age. The cancer was successfully treated and he went on to become a symbol for those who fought cancer and beat it.
  This started to crumble in 2011 when he was being investigated for using performance enhancing drugs while actively cycling. (The is a forbidden practice.) He denied doing this, but was found guilty, banned from the sport for life and stripped of his titles. He later admitted that he was guilty.
  This,of course,threw everything else into question. Was he really who he seemed to be or was he just some sort of mirage? Was he really what people thought he was or just attention grabber?
  I ran across an article about an interview with one of the men that Ray Lewis testified against. He was asked what he thought of Ray Lewis. The answer was that he considered Lewis to be a good athlete. He also said that Lewis was human. He had to protect himself and his career and did whatever he had to do to accomplish that.
  That's a good thought and one we should all keep in mind. When we put athletes, actors and other public figures on pedestals we have to remember that they are human. They are not gods, they are not endowed with some mysterious special quality. They are simply more gifted one area. Nothing more. They are prone to making bad decisions just like the rest of us.
   Sometime in the last few weeks I heard or read, I'm not sure where, that we expect too much of our public figures. They are supposed to be strong, honest, courageous, scrupulously moral and good looking. I think there is something to this. We do expect those we admire to be perfect. When the inevitable flaw or chink in the armor is found we turn on them and go off to find the next person to admire.
  It's very easy to say that you would never make the same choices that Lance Armstrong and Ray Lewis made. When you are not actually in that situation it is easy to pronounce judgement. Please understand, I am not excusing the actions of these two men. Lying and obstructing are wrong. What I am saying is that I have never been in a situation where my entire future is jeopardized. I don't know what it is like to realise that that everything I have worked for will go away if I have to face the consequences of my actions. I would like to think that I would own up to what I did and face whatever consequences there would be. Then again, maybe the temptation to cover up would be too much.
   I like to read the comments after the online articles. I was caught by one in particular. It said that if you wanted to look for heroes go to Arlington Cemetery. This too,is a very good thought. I think we should look around us for role models and heroes. To me those are the real heroes, the people who just keep going day after day with no spotlights on them whatsoever. I can name several of mine. My Dad, who is interested in computers and tries to keep up as best he can. My friend, Patricia,who is making  a new life for herself. My friend,Sarah,who has been battling sarcoma and has beaten it for the moment. President Campbell,one of the most compassionate people I know and his wife, Susan, who is an admirable person in her own right (and a very good teacher). Then of course, there is C. I know I've written about why I admire him so much before, so I won't repeat. There are many others.
   I'm not going to join the many people who have and are expressing their hatred for Ray Lewis and Lance Armstrong. Yes, their actions have fallen short and have caused disappointment to the peole that admire them. They both have pasts that will never go away and will be dealing with whatever consequences their actions have caused. I wish both men well at whatever the future holds for them. They are, after all, human.