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Your new teachers - Comic book heroes. Sweet!
Comic book heroes are good teachers because the learning points are in what they do. The double pay-off is that you can enjoy the fantasy and anchor the learning point. Enjoy these lessons that I learned from comic book heroes.
Spider-man
Be responsible for your choices and actions. Spider-man adheres to the code that with great power comes great responsibility. The assumption that you might wrongly make is that if you had great power you would demonstrate great responsibility. Wake up. You have more power than you acknowledge. Look at what others, who have the same power that you have, or less, have done. If you want to make things happen use the power that is yours.
There is a deeper lesson in that assumption. The reality is that if you take more responsibility you will have more power. The more responsibility you take the more power you have. Give up reasonability and all you can do is whine, blame and complain. Stop blaming others. Take responsibility and gain power.
Fantastic Four
Be part of a team of like-minded individuals. The team is always bigger than the individuals – even bigger than the sum of the individuals. The Rolling Stones is bigger than Mick Jagger.
You are judged by your team – by whom you hang around with. We tend to hang around those who we are like or want to be like. If you think that your friends are stupid, lazy and sneaky – then you must be stupid, lazy and sneaky – or want to be. Hang around those you want to be like. If you want to be a star athlete hang around star athletes. If you want to be a business owner – hang around business owners.
Hulk
Nobody likes you when you are angry. Nuff said.
Daredevil
Daredevil is legally blind. He cannot see with his eyes. Yet he sees far more with his enhanced other senses – smell, hearing, touch and taste. He has an extra radar sense – much like a bat so he can see shapes.
Imagine what it might feel like to be blind. I bet that person would give almost anything to see. Yet there are many who can see but do not notice the whole picture or the details. Is sight wasted on them?
Sometimes we see without really noticing. It is not really about what you can see. It is what you notice that counts. Use all your senses. Notice more of what you see.
Superman
Superman is invulnerable. Bullets and bombs bounce off him. Nothing can hurt him – except kryptonite. Kryptonite – a rock from his home planet that hurts only him – but no one else. Yet it can hurt and kill Superman. Seems weird.
What hurts you might not hurt your friend. And what hurts your friend might not have the same effect on you. Everyone has their kryptonite. It could be a fear, weakness or just personal baggage.
And kryptonite is not the only thing that can hurt Superman. He has no defense against magic. He can be hurt by simple human emotion. Because he cares he can be hurt by those he cares about. Just like us. Even if you think you are invulnerable – you have your kryptonite.
Batman
Batman has no super powers. Yet he is a full member of the Justice League. He is equal in stature to Superman. Batman is who he is because of his commitment, training and self-confidence.
Batman took something very negative and painful (the death of this parents) and turned it into a positive outcome. Turn your negatives into positives. Turn your pain into triumphs.
One more lesson from the Batman. There will always be a joker who is trying to get you or make you look bad. Don’t take it personal. That’s what jokers do. Don’t obsess on the joker. Deal with it and move on.
X-Men
The X-Men are mutants. They have special powers. That also casts them as different. We tend to distrust and dislike those who are different from us. If you look and act differently from mainstream society then you might be outcast. You might need to work harder to be accepted by others.
Celebrate your uniqueness. But realize the weirder your uniqueness the more angst this might cause for others. Don’t hate others for questioning your weirdness. Instead build understanding. Emphasize the things that you have in common.
Blade
Blade kills vampires. Vampires suck the life-giving blood from humans whilst transforming the victims into more vampires.
Beware of the bloodsuckers. There are people around you who might be bloodsuckers. They can drain the life from you. They might kill your dreams, desire, drive and happiness. They might feel threatened by your distinct strengths. Avoid the vampires.
Punisher
Don’t build your life on vengeance. It can be very lonely and painful. The Punisher kills criminals. Might sound like a good thing. But he does it out of the pain he feels at the loss of his family. He never feels satisfaction. He feels empty. He is a fugitive. He is alone. So he keeps on killing. And eventually the system closes in on him. Don’t be a punisher.
Martian Manhunter
Life isn’t fair. The Martian Manhunter is as powerful as Superman and has all the powers of Superman: Super strength, super speed, flight, invulnerability, and vision powers. Plus the Martian Manhunter has telepathic powers – he can read minds and plant hypnotic suggestions. And he is a shape shifter – he can assume the appearance of anyone or anything. Add one more power - invisibility.
But he is relatively unknown in the comic world. Why? Maybe because he is a Martian and earthlings never trusted Martians. Maybe because he is green. Maybe because Superman was first. Who knows?
Sometimes things just don’t go the way you think it should. That’s life. Life just isn’t fair. Get over it.
There is no perfect hero. Each works with their particular strength and weakness. Each deals with their challenges and issues. Maybe you have more in common with those heroes than you thought. Sweet.
© George Torok, Comic book sage. www.Torok.com