Senior English and College Composition students started their year off by studying the epic poem Beowulf. As part of our background discussions, we explore the meaning of the word “hero”. Students discuss the portrayal of heroes in Hollywood, in comic books, and in communities. This discussion leads to the first writing assignment of the year, my personal hero. Not surprisingly, students struggle to pinpoint the adult or peer they consider to be their own personal hero. They can write an entire list of names of friends, community members, and family members they admire and list the reasons they admire them. But finding someone off that list to be given the label hero seems to be a rather too emotional task. Forcing students to select someone not famous in sports, music, or movies really pushes them outside their emotional comfort zones, and really brings voice and depth to their writing.
One of my College Composition students agreed to share his personal hero paper on the blog. I have promised my students that work shared on the blog would not be accompanied by their names. Enjoy!
Mrs. Wyatt
When asked to think about my “personal hero”, it was a struggle to think of someone worthy of that title. It wasn’t until after the first football game of my senior year that I knew the answer for myself . . . Coach S.
S’s first appearance in my life occurred during my seventh grade year. He was the head coach of the Lane County Diamondbacks, the joint football team of Dighton and Healy. I’m not going to lie, he came across as an intimidating man. For lack of a better description, my first impression of S was that he was a hard-butt, and that I would undoubtedly not survive my seventh grade football season. However, as it was always preached to me, “you can’t judge a book by its cover”. Throughout the course of that year, I gained much respect from S, and he gained double that from me.
It was not until the summer between my junior and senior year in high school that I really became friends with Coach S. He would text me every Sunday and Wednesday asking me to come play Brazilian basketball at Healy, which I regret never having time to go do. It was more than just sports with S, and it wasn’t until I hurt my leg in the first few days of 2-a-days in my senior year of football that I truly understood this.
S had accepted an assistant coach position for the Dighton Hornets, a football team in the process of finding what works for them after the loss of two key players that graduated the year before. S’s job in practice was a modest one – nursing me back to health. In the time we spent on the sideline, him stretching me or doing some sort of massage he guarantees would heal me faster, we had time to talk. We talked about life, religion, leadership, and football, of course. In our conversations, I saw a glimpse into his coaching style. What he teaches on the field should be applied to life. In our efforts to succeed on the field, we were learning ways to be successful in life. Devotion, commitment, passion for what we do, all this he put into two and a half hours on a football field.
Coach S no doubt has, and will continue, to play a huge role in molding me into who I am today and the man I wish to become. His lessons will be carried on with me, and I will pass them on someday, whether that be as a coach, a father, or just a stranger met on the street one day. If I could give one piece of advice to the reader, it would be this. If you ever meet Coach S, listen to him. Whether he knows it or not, he is one of the wisest men I have ever met, and the conversations that may seem simple to him, hold a deeper understanding for those willing to look for it.
Mrs. Wyatt's Classroom 