My Favorite of Them All
Posted: Friday, November 11, 2011
by Jack H. Schick
I’ve been trying all week to do the assignment and come up with an essay about my favorite person. If I just picked one of my heroes, I guess that would be fine. The problem with that is I’d never be able to explain why that person was my favorite in less than 2,500 words as we’re required to do here. Well, I suppose I could, but it would only scratch the surface and seem insufficient to me. When I think about writing an essay on a ‘normal’ person who had a great influence on my life, like my dad or someone, I again think I could not do it satisfactorily without putting much more work into it than I have the time for this week.
I thought I could focus on his younger years, and what it meant to have a son growing up with me. Most of us dads can appreciate that. I could relive all the wonderful experiences, the good and the bad. I could point out all the great stuff I did or taught him. But, that essay would be too shallow, too, and only scratch the surface. To develop a character and show why he’s my favorite, I’d have to discuss the whole person, not just the child.
I could do the same with my daughters, but it would sound almost silly. “I love my kids. They are the best. They are my favorite persons,” sounds like something almost anybody could say. It would be trite. “She is my favorite person because….” Whatever I say it would be because she’s my daughter. I could list the highlights of her life, but love and family would be the real reasons.
I could pick my only grandchild, my granddaughter. The problem is she’s not three yet, and lives on the other side of the country. I’d have to speculate and make stuff up about her. I could go into some cerebral, philosophical ramble on immortality through our progeny, or expound on theories of man, the mind and the spirit. I could even go into biology, species preservation, the passing on of genes, etc. I could discuss sociology and the family unit, but all that would take too much energy and not be very interesting to read.
I discussed the assignment with my wife (yes, I could do it about her, but, seriously. We’ve been married almost 40 years. As all who have been know, she might be my favorite person, but she’s also my least favorite sometimes. The feeling is mutual. “Let sleeping dog lie,” they say). When I asked her about the assignment, she said, “As long as I’ve know you, you’ve always been your favorite person.” (See what I mean about her?) It sort of ticked me off and hurt my feelings at the same time. “Write about you. You’ve always been your favorite topic.” She said.
I just stared at her. She was watching “Bones” on TV. She didn’t even look over at me. She wasn’t being sarcastic or giving me a dig. She was serious, was just speaking the truth as she saw it. I didn’t know what to say. She was absolutely right, though. I went out into the computer room and sat down at the keyboard. I had total writer’s block and decided to play some on-line poker instead.
That was four days ago. I’ve done several essays since then, but I wouldn’t approach this one with a ten foot pole. Her comments had bothered me ever since. It certainly made me think and look at myself some. Gees, what an egoist I am. Gees, I’ve been wrapped up in me since as long as I can remember. I envision back when I was a tyke, put myself into that little guy’s mind and…yep, he was the most important and favorite person in his life. I think about me in high school, interacting as a lonely teen who’d reached puberty. I thought about how I acted and why. Yep…I was my favorite person all right. I didn’t think much about anybody else back then.
And so it goes, on and on, through every phase of my life. If I go back and get into my mind at anytime or place in my entire history the answer is always the same. It was all about me. I don’t mean it was all selfishness and lack of concern for others, though that was there, too. I mean, I was the center of the world as I knew it. Everything; the stars, the people, everything in the universe started in me and went outward from there. Bad behavior was to gratify or satisfy me. Good behavior was to gratify and satisfy me. On the whole, I guess I was okay, though. I was always, generally, a well liked guy. I have a lot of good characteristics. I’m remorseful for the bad stuff. I have an empathetic, kind streak; but, still, the world centers on me. I see everything from here.
So, after all that miserable thinking about it, when I sat down to try to write about my favorite person I hit the same brick wall again. I relaxed and meditated for a few minutes. I thought to myself, “If there is one person I wish was immortal, who would it be? If there is one person I would pick to be the sole survivor, who would it be?” I’m afraid the answer came out the same every time. It’s still me, because I’m the only person I really know. I’m the only one who seems real to me.
I may not have the accomplishments and fame of some of my heroes. There certainly are 'average' people, living and dead, who have affected me greatly. Who I choose as my heroes is really a reflection of what I’m like, though. Being affected by a significant other is really about my own development. I’m not perfect. No one is. I think I would be no less a representative of the human race than Einstein, or Bonaparte, than Lincoln or Martin King. Perhaps I would be even a better example, since I am only an average, flawed person. The 'great ones' were, when the final evaluation is made, nothing more than people, which is what I am. I can appreciate their lives, but I am living this life. How could it be less than my favorite of them all?
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Top-level comments on this article: (1 total)I love how you actually wrote about all your really favorite people. Of course you could find heaps of things to write about your loved ones. But it also means choosing one over the other and that in itself is difficult. I'm having a difficult time with this one too. But them I'm having a rough time getting words down anyway. Oh, I've got a few bits but not anything I have really wanted to write about. I like this article a whole lot and think I know your favorites.thanks for reading and commenting. I just sat down and started typing- held it overnight then edited some.reminds me of a line in a song. "I can prop you up, look at you and tell you, 'your great'. But if you dont think that you are, then my words carry no weight" If your favorite person isnt you, Im pretty sure you wont be someone elses favorite person either. ;)
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