I've been thinking a lot about Batman and superheroes lately. And I've been thinking a lot about Ben. Maybe it's because it's February, the month of love, and maybe I'm wearing rose-colored glasses. Whatever the reason, it has occured to me in the last few weeks that Ben is incredibly ordinary. And incredibly superheroish at the same time.
See if you agree:
1. All superheroes wear tights or some embarrassing costume--Ben doesn't wear tights, per se. But when he runs, he wears entirely too short of shorts.
2. Superheroes can move FAST--Ben runs in his short shorts. And he runs quite fast in them. Sometimes a few snarly villains can catch him in a race, but not many.
3. Every superhero has at least one archnemesis--Ben is a teacher in an upper-middle class school district. Can you say helicopter moms galore? The archnemesis of many teachers . . .
4. Most superheroes have some kind of weakness, krytonite you could say--Ben can't go to Target for more than five minutes without getting woozy and ill. So tragic. It's like all his power is sucked out, and we're left with a deflated Ben. In short shorts.
5. Every superhero feels compassion and hurts when he can't save the helpless--A few hours after I wrote my last blog post, I had to be rushed to the hospital for excuricating pain. It turns out my right ovary twisted and would have to be removed later that evening with emergency surgery. Needless to say, that was not a good day. But there were two things about that day that I will never forget. One was when I saw our baby girl on the ultrasound screen and knew she was okay. And the second was Ben's face. I was lying on the hospital bed, curled up, writhing in pain and moaning for pain meds. I looked up at Ben, and there he stood with moist eyes and a look of such anguish that I've never seen before. I knew in that instant I wasn't alone in all of this. My pain was his. And I can honestly say, that was one of the most beautiful moments of our marriage so far.
Admittedly, he doesn't fly, he doesn't sneak out at night to battle the Joker or Lex Luther, and he doesn't star in blockbuster hits. But he has loved me like every little girl dreams of, he has prayed for me day after day, he has taken care of me when I'm nauseated and miserable, and he has held my hand during the good and the ugly.
What more could you ask for from a superhero? Happy belated Valentine's Day, Ben--my superhero yesterday, today, and till the end! I love you, short shorts and all!
