To Die A Hero
/To Die A Hero
To lay down one’s life for another
Noble chance you took
To make the bargain boldly
To not telegraph those intentions
To keep the fear from your gaze
The back straight, eyes firm and resolute
Voice soft for the captive and clear for recording
Do that doublethink to make your feet move before you
To the open darkness of the waiting door
You must have had to think
“I’m not going into a predestination,
I’m walking towards a choice.
This isn’t a mile of death, of sacrifice.”
To know and remain placid,
For if the terrorist knew of any bigger purpose
The trade would never have been allowed
Did you walk into that place knowing you were going
Towards your own final call?
You were bold in action but not blind.
In these days of the world feeling close
When mad man appear to have an advantage,
Mankind weeps in shadowed halls,
Trembles in terror awaiting a bullet,
Shuddering in dread for explosions in the news,
Hunched shoulders under the wait for the next tragedy.
The whole of the race half surrendered to extinction.
In the half light of the burden of that grief,
Buried under the weight of dread of tomorrows.
Stepping across a street awash in revolving lights
Steeped in the aroma of another impending shrieking headline
Tense with the expectation of more crushed spirits
Those are more than a small step for mankind.
Taking on a heavier burden than just the situation at hand.
Could it be with a clear eye for the larger weaving
Was there room for thought for the others at home
The billions around the globe who would look
With trembling gaze in later days
Upon this scene and the moments in bore?
Did you feel small or alone in that instant?
Were your brothers and sisters behind you enough
Their hearts going with you in their eyes?
You lay down your weapon for them
You gave yourself up for the woman the Keeper had captive.
His leverage against your countrymen.
His very weapon against the world and those he hated.
This moment His mission statement.
His action plan bearing the fruits of further fear.
Each step he took to inch deeper into that slide into despair.
You took her place freely.
Convinced Him you were the better deal.
Stood aside to let her run free and made the choice that stranded yourself.
A knife to the throat and none in your hand.
The shouting and steam, noise and madness.
Time quivering on a pinpoint.
The world stopped turning in an instant to watch.
The ones who knew you gave witness later,
You never saw yourself a hero.
He may have striven for the martyrs cloth but not yourself.
While he failed in his intentions,
You spoke out only to save another.
No thought spared for yourself or your own life.
And that is what makes a hero,
A man with no cause to guide him
No noble goal or mission statement he is trying to attain.
He is not seeking a fortune
Not shouting a meaningless battle cry
Or empty platitudes of ultimately personal glory.
Choices made for others
Ultimate gifts in love for friends
The ones we care for solely because they are human
A woman in fear so you take her place
Not asking who she is or if you know her
It didn’t matter, she was a person so you gave comfort
You died a hero not because you sought death
But because you tried to stop it
The lives you saved are larger than those there
The ripple effect the countless others
The millions who stood watch and witness after
Thousands who will tell the story
Echos of a tragedy with a core of hope
Man is not lost in this tale
This time there is not howling horror
A hero arose to save the hearts of others
Not just that day but the days to come
For in one moment a beacon was lit.
The world watched and selflessness was shown
Man cannot despair of man
Greater love can no man have
But laying down his own life.
You may have died a hero
You will live on
To save us all.
