Five ways to help our children realize their hero potential.
by Ruchama King Feuerman
Every kid has a secret fantasy of saving the day – being the one to stop the mugger, jump into the ocean to save the drowning child, commandeer the plane away from the hijackers. I think we all harbor that wish to be brave, to be a hero.
I met an elderly man in Safed who had thrown his whole body on top of hand grenade about to explode in a crowded plaza. It didn't detonate but his legendary act still inspired awe and gratitude years later. Now that's a hero, I thought. Every Israeli soldier who goes into his battle and risks his life is a hero.
But what is a Jewish hero? Are our heroes different? Ethics of the Fathers (4:1) asks, “Who is considered strong and brave? Who is regarded as a hero? Someone who conquers his yetzer hara – one’s impulses to commit wrong and do bad. As it written, “Better is one slow to anger than a strong man, and one who rules over his spirit than a conqueror of a city” (Proverbs 16:32).
This definition of a hero tells me lots of things:
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