Heroes are people who help the community and are inspiring to people. Heroes demonstrate qualities such as courage and perseverance when there is adversity, they are selfless, kind, and they inspire other people. They will sacrifice themselves for others. Some people are great role models, and good heroes, but others have less heroic qualities, and overall fail to be true heroes. While Pushpa Basnet displays all of these heroic qualities, Odysseus lacks in these qualities.

Odysseus is a hero sometimes, but many times he fails to be a true hero. Odysseus has a true heart, but he also displays qualities such as selfishness, hubris, and cowardice, which are not very heroic. Odysseus is very full of himself after he escapes and blinds the Cyclops, Polyphemus, son of Poseidon.  “‘If anyone asks who blinded you, tell them it was Odysseus, son of Laertes and Lord of Ithaca, Odysseus the Sacker of Cities!’” (p. 16) Odysseus gave Polyphemus all he needed to curse, and make him and his men have a bad life. If Odysseus was a true hero, he would have thought about what he was going to do before he did it.   

Pushpa Basnet is a very important modern day hero. Pushpa lives in Kathmandu, Nepal. She is 28 years old and started her work when she was 21. When she visited a jail, she was amazed of how many children there were. One little girl pulled on her shawl and grinned. She immediately knew she had to help. Pushpa is kind and has devoted her life to helping others. She is selfless, and kind. She started the  Early Childhood Development Center for children who live in prisons. If a parent is put in jail, they have to make a decision. Their children can either go to jail with them, or live on the streets. She has saved over 100 children since 2005. “It’s not fair for children to live in the prison because the haven’t done anything wrong,” Basnet says, “My mission is to make sure no child grows up behind prison walls.” Nepal’s Department of Prison Management estimates 80 children live in the nation’s prisons. Pushpa saves them. If Basnet didn’t do this, many children would be stuck in jail, not living the normal life of a child. No kid should have to live in a jail. She is helping 100s on children stuck in jail, have fun in the outside world, and to have a view of something besides bars.

My personal heroes are my dad and my mom. My dad is a contractor, and he teaches me lots of things. He doesn’t just teach me stuff about building with wood and metal, but how to build my confidence, happiness, and knowledge. He inspires me both with his art and his kindness. He really loves me and I love him back. My dad is very inspiring, kind and fun. In the summer he teaches me how to drive the boat, and also helps me build. (This year is a tree house.) He tells me stories from his childhood, and inspires me to make and try many of those things. He is so kind and fun, that he will devote his time to  have fun with and help me. My mom is a librarian, and everyone thinks that she wants me to read, and only read. But no. She wants me to be myself. She says to never not be yourself and to have fun being a kid. She helps me understand things, and is selfless. She will do almost anything to make me have the best life I possibly can. My dad and mom are perfect the way they are, and they love the whole family. Without my dad and my mom, I would not be as happy as I am.

Pushpa Basnet is a great hero. Unlike Odysseus she is selfless, kind, and inspires others. She has faced challenges and handled them well. On the other hand, when Odysseus was put in a challenging situation, he did not handle it so well. Heroes like Pushpa have made this world go around. They have the world a better place for everyone. Without them, our life would not be as great. They even make our everyday life better. Even one little thing, that someone does can make a person happier. So they are a hero to them. You don’t have to be famous to be a hero. My parents are my heroes, but they are not famous. One day, I hope that everyone will be a hero, even if you only do something that even just helps one person, or makes one person happier, and help this world become a better place.

My partner is Lars. We are reading Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH. Our partnership was productive and fun because we have different strengths, so our work had different points of view, and we worked together well. I’m proud that I discussed more of my ideas in the discussion . One challenge for me was to see the story from a different point of view, like his. I would like to work on that.