December 26, 2010 8:42 AM

Sometimes, the world isn't such a bad place after all

MY NEW HERO

Rudy Favard

OK., so I know I write a lot about what I think is wrong with the world. I tend to focus (sometimes too much so) on things I think are broken, and I’m not often as good at offering solutions as I am at identifying problems. In an effort to demonstrate that I’m not a relentless, unreformed, and intractable pessimist, I thought I’d share a story that set me to thinking that a change of focus now and again might just be a good thing for me.

We live in difficult times, and yeah, I get it. Things are tough. You don’t have to convince of that; I’ve been unemployed for the past 11 months. Still, a relentless focus on what sucks (even though there’s so much that DOES in fact suck) does nothing good for anyone…and so I’m going to enjoy this story about Rudy Favard, a 17-year-old high school football player who understands what’s important in a way that still escapes so many adults.

Four nights a week, he leaves his homework and makes the 10-minute drive to the Parker house. Around 8 p.m., he carries Sammy upstairs, chats a bit, hugs everybody, and heads home to finish his work. After considerable effort, the Parkers convinced Rudy to take enough money to cover gas, with a little left over.

In the few months the Parkers have known him, Rudy has become not just a help with Sammy, but a salve for their pain. He and Rick talk about football. Patty quizzes him on girls. Ben usually parks himself as close to Rudy as possible, looking up at him adoringly. And most nights, Sam will tremble with excitement as Rudy picks him up.

“It’s like family,” said the shy senior. It goes both ways: The Parkers were on the field with Rudy’s mother the night Malden Catholic honored its senior football players.

Sometimes, doing the right thing isn’t difficult at all. Most of the time, it doesn’t involved grand, sweeping gestures. Sometimes it really is just as simply as carrying a disabled child up the stairs and tucking them into bed.

The real heroes aren’t the ones you might think. They’re not the ones who headline the evening news or get their faces plastered all over the front pages of newspapers. Sometimes, the real heroes are the ones doing something as simple and heartfelt as what Rudy Favard is doing…and we could all learn a thing or two from his example.

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This page contains a single entry by Jack Cluth published on December 26, 2010 8:42 AM.

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