“Faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, and able to leap tall buildings in a single bound”. Superman’s rescuing efforts are..well…to say the least, out of this world. Here’s this guy whose average day might be filled with fighting crime, saving lives, or placing the earth back on its axis. Most people love him because they feel protected knowing he’s around. Some hate him because they can’t be him. Nonetheless he does what he does because he was pretty much born into it so it’s no big hurdle for him to spring into action when someone is in need. It’s just second nature. But, first nature makes him just a man.

You have to wonder what gives someone the ability to be a savior. I’m not talking about God. I’m speaking in terms of an ordinary human being who feels as if it is their job to save the world. All I know is that when Superman finished saving the day, he removed his costume, went to work where he sat behind a desk, was intimidated by his boss, and was also afraid to ask the love of his life out on a date. He was fearless in fighting world catastrophes but vulnerable to a normal man’s life.

Clark Kent was basically a nobody. He lived under the radar. As a superhero, he could patch up a gap in the railways as an oncoming train approached it. As a man, he patched up some cuts and bruises he obtained in a diner scuffle; not believing that he could ever bleed. There’s a big difference when the suit that is worn is by Kenneth Cole and the one with the big ‘S’ on the chest and red cape to match. In character, he manages to cater to everyone else and the reward to himself is that he feels great that he is of help and is needed. Out of character, he doesn’t know what to do with or for himself. He never heard the term “take care of self before taking care of others” so when that time comes when he is just Clark, he is so lost.

I wonder if he thinks about if he was not born with those characteristics. What if he was born to be anything else; let’s say a doctor. Would he wonder if that was all to life and wish he had a bigger impact on civilization? I mean doctors save lives as well but when it comes to personal health do they know how to treat themselves too? Or, do they avoid their own issues because they feel their purpose is to fulfill others’ needs and theirs can wait?

That’s all I wonder while I lay in this bed of kryptonite thinking, “Who’s going to save me?”