#handsonmanila

We have always loved superheroes. Back when we were kids, we would jump off a monobloc chair and pretend for a split second that we can fly. We would scream at the top of our lungs: "Don't worry, I'm coming!" And we would run fast pretending to be rescuing poor little children from some imaginary, humongous and ugly monster. We would, with all effort, throw the best flying kick we could; the one we practiced the night before and we would feel really good like we have accomplished the most impossible task mankind has ever been given.

As the years went by, we have grown tired of make-believe and so our fondness for superheroes have transformed. We no longer wear capes and shiny masks like we used to, but we do collect comics, or maybe even action figures. We would spend hundreds just so we could watch the most recent film adaptation of our favorite Marvel or DC superhero stories. You would see a lot of Facebook memes and Tumblr posts expressing adoration over these powerful beings with, more often than not, heavenly and unbelievably perfect looks.

We have spent so much time and effort praising how these superheroes have helped thousands of innocent civilians in the world of comics and television. Some of us have even associated our lives and struggles with the ones our favorite superheroes have experienced. But why exactly do we have this fondness over heroism and superpowers?

I guess it is because deep in our hearts we want to be like them. Well, not exactly like them - as I never have personally imagined turning into a big green hulk. We like the idea of having the ability to effect a significant change in the society we live in. We want to do something great; something that will bring good to this seemingly complicated and hopeless world. We want to be the Batman of our Gotham City, the Spiderman who keeps the streets of New York peaceful - we want to be the superhero of this world we are in. That is why we aspire to be doctors and hope to help sick people and cure illnesses. We aspire to be lawyers who will fight against injustice and bring those who are poisoning our city down (now that sounded just like Green Arrow).

Sadly, though, as much as we want to save humanity, we find very few opportunities to live out that dream. Or so we think. Maybe because we do not think we are smart enough, or because we do not have the financial resources to send ourselves to med or law school or maybe even because we are afraid that that big of a responsibility is gonna cost us a lot - not just financially but a part of our personal happiness, perhaps, or to some extent our self-actualization.

But I think that is exactly where we are wrong. We think that the only way for us to save the world is to be really powerful, or famous, or extra talented. Personally, I think that while having power and being able to do unique and amazing things are gonna be extremely helpful, they are not always necessary. They are not prerequisites to being 'agents of change.' I think all that it takes to be a real-life superhero is to have the will to instigate change. And having the will also means translating that into action even in the simplest of ways.

BE A VOLUNTEER. Go serve at your local community center. Visit an orphanage and offer to spend some hours helping the children. Join the Earth Savers club in your school and help plant some trees. Blog about social change and emphasize the importance of civic action in bringing about a better society. Tell your friends to do the same. You might ask, how can doing those things change the world? They seem so small for the overly complicated problems that the world has.

This is where a quote I got from Twitter will be very helpful: "Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself." This is, if I'm not mistaken, by Leo Tolstoy. We have always believed that those that can bring change are the things which are advanced and complicated; those that only a few can understand - like trade agreements that only foreign policy makers and economists would understand. But we ignore the fact that things that truly matter are those simple things that you do in your everyday life. You may not be planting trees 24/7 but having been a volunteer for the environment changes the way you view things, your attitudes, habits and maybe even lifestyle. You would hardly notice that you are now hesitant to using plastic or burning garbage. You will now be mindful of the trash around you and would make sure that as much as possible your surroundings are clean.

It seems pretty easy to understand but it is normal, at first, for one to be doubtful of the process. You would only know exactly what that means and how that happens when you find yourself in that situation - volunteering and having your life changed in the greatest, most positive way possible while at the same time contributing to the change you want to see happen to the world.

  Somewhere deep inside, I know that the kid who dreamed of saving the world is still there. And I know that kid is well aware that he really can. Go, volunteer and be the superhero you have always wanted to become.