superheroes & supervillians

The day you realise that Santa is a myth and that superheroes are not infallible has got to be the most despicable day of your life. When you stop believing that anything is possible and that if you can’t do it , “they“ will do it for you.

I guess that’s why I stopped respecting the supermen and batmen of the world. Apart from their rather flamboyant dress code, the supers’ are perceived to be perfect. We all love the idea of Obama but even he caused a raucous when he won the Nobel Peace Prize recently with very little to show but hope. Even Nelson Mandela can’t claim to be the faultless idol.

It’s hope though that dies when your role-model is cut down to size. That’s when my castle, of previously unshaken foundation, rocked violently. The tremor sent me into panic mode: rationalising to no avail, disbelief, anger for not having known earlier, fear of losing!

A strange thing happened though, and perhaps that’s what is making me reflect. Santa wrote to say that his sleigh was out of action and there would be no fireplace posting that xmas. I took that quite harshly. I’d eaten all my veggies all year round and I’d been really good; why would Santa let me down???

It was by some luck or magic (whichever one is more appealing to you) though that I came across one of Santa’s Elves. Having left the ‘pole of dreams where the production of happiness had halted, he had ventured into muggle domain to seek greener pastures. The poor little Elf ,although soaring in his new role, was struggling to remember the enchantment of the toy factory. I on the other hand had accepted a black and white world but wanted more than ever to believe that I was wrong.

Elf took to me cautiously as I to him. I wasn’t prepared to have the mystery cause my castle to come crashing down. He was afraid that one person’s belief would not be enough to revive the magical empire of the ‘pole. Caution has transformed itself into a friendship. One in which magic is boundless.

I sometimes feel conflicted by my trust in Elf as opposed to my trust in other muggles. Perhaps the trust derives from Elf’s ability to actively listen. Perhaps Elf feels equally conflicted. There’s a duty inherent in the relationship that purports a high level of responsibility. A respect for differences and similarities and reliance assign itself to altruistic liaison.

I have become my dependable Santa. I don’t need special powers for that, the magic fills itself in the expectations on myself and the will to follow through. If I fail in these expectations then perhaps the magic has not run dry but the expectations are too high or the passion is waning. Saving the world is the aim, as long as it is one step at a time.

Elf has evolved too. He has become the ‘pole that he so dearly wished for. This, having found that the aura of the ‘pole was not the time and place or the opulence of the great giver; rather the giving. And so in giving and in sharing the little elf transforms inside the muggle world to a colossal philanthropist.

I guess where this leaves me is believing that superheroes and myths can be great and can make us believe much more in ourselves than we give them credit for. I think that the disheartenment and the disappointment created from the illusion are necessary for character building. I think friendships are vehicles to inspire positive growth. I think that giving is paramount to receiving. I think that listening is the undiscovered magic. I think that acceptance without judgement is a form selflessness which can only be acquired when giving happens without expectation of reciprocation. I think responsibility complements perceptiveness.

Anything is possible if you put your mind to it. Castles can be built to weather a storm, but it takes eternity to experience all the storms to be able to lay the right foundation. Belief is an unbelievable instrument of success.

The magic is spreading in and around our friendship. The experience is broadening and the beliefs are strengthening. I’m glad that Superheroes exist, Infallible or not!