Some may wear Gucci
and donate billions of dollars to charitable campaigns, whilst others wear only
a humble uniform as they clean our trash.
I know that
I may be offending many self-proclaimed hard core fans of Batman, but I must
confess; I fell asleep watching Dark Knight Rises, as well as the sequel before
that, the Dark Knight. And when I accidentally let slip that I thought The
Avengers was “sort of” lengthy to the point of boring, my friend drew himself
up to his full five feet five, and called me an uncultured swine.
Now, I may
not have any appreciation for superhero movies, but I do understand why there
is such a strong fan base for them, especially the Marvel/DC comic varieties.
Who doesn't love to believe in ordinary men bestowed with extraordinary
capabilities like flying, and saving whiny damsels in distress?
But in the
world of iron-clad arrogant billionaires, tight chest-popping outfits and
handsome web-shooting vigilantes, we tend to overlook real life people who are
perhaps, greater than any cape-flapping superman.
Don Ritchie,
84 years old, lives a quiet unassuming life in Watson Bay, Sydney, or so it
seems. He’s been dubbed “Guardian of the Gap” for his tireless attempts for the
past 45 years to dissuade people from jumping to their deaths at the notorious
suicide cliff called “The Gap”, near his home. Officially, he has successfully
saved 160 people’s lives, but unofficially, the figure is closer to 500 people.
Don Ritchie
would spot what looked like potentially, suicidal people standing precariously
close the edge, and he would slowly walk across the road to them, smile and
ask, “Can I help you in some way?” before inviting them over to his house later
for tea, or something stronger if necessary.
But of course, even Batman
couldn’t save every single citizen of Arkham City. Likewise, Don Ritchie
recounts many personal stories of how he had to watch several people jumping
before his very eyes.
But refusing to be disheartened, Don Ritchie keeps to his beliefs, “always
remember the power of the simple smile, a helping hand, a listening ear and a
kind word. My ambition has always been to just get them away from the edge, to
buy them time, to give them the opportunity to reflect and give them the chance to realise that things might look better the next
morning.”
People
are hungry for heroes; a hero who inspires others to believe that humanity is
worth saving and the world worth living.
They come
in all shapes and forms; some wear the Malaysian flag proudly on their sleeves
(Datuk Lee Chong Wei, Nicol David, Pandelela Rinong), whilst others wear only a
humble uniform as they clean our trash. Some wear Gucci and donate billions of
dollars to charitable campaigns, whilst others wear modest clothing and labour
to put food on the table.
Superheroes
can be disguised as anyone: our mum, dad, sister, neighbour, best friend, dog,
cat, rock, idols, celebrities, relatives, etc. Superheroes can even be you. If
only you choose to accept the responsibility and believe that the world around
you is one that you are capable of influencing, never forgetting the power of
the simple smile, a helping hand, a listening ear and a kind word.
Not all
superheroes wear capes.
Though
the good looking ones usually do.
 |
| Admittedly not a big fan of Henry Cavill. But this is a really nice picture of the Man of Steel |
P.S - one of my very first assignments that I wrote in foundation year.
