Heroes suffer
Sometimes just as painfully as you and I
Cracks of wear and tear line their face
Illness riddles their body
Renders them a shell of their former self…….
Heroes end up in hospital beds
In states of confusion
Not a care in the world
Not knowing who you are
Or their impact on your life…….
Heroes have faults
Many of them
Even though they were masked when you were impressionable
Hardly takes away from their heroic status
That they once held…….
Heroes are not immune to time
The undisputed and undefeated villain
When it grabs a hold of them
I wonder if the real victims are us
Those who looked up to them
Witnessing them going out this way…….
Heroes do die
All of them
As unfathomable as it once seemed
Many decades ago…….
Heroes live on
Long after they’re gone
In stories, moments of reminiscence
In how you live your life
Living with their example in mind
Maybe one day to be the hero yourself
Whipped Owl 