I’ve almost lost my hero twice. My hero is a train fanatic, civil war buff, hardworking man. My hero knows whats important in life. My hero has been through a lot, a lot more than I ever have and is still stronger than I will ever be. My hero is my father.

My father was born on May 21, 1956. He is one of three, the middle child and the only boy. His father left the family in 1958, when my dad was just 2 years old. This left his mother alone to raise them. My dads family didn’t have a lot of money. He had to go with out a lot of things he wanted to have. He worked on a paper root as a child to save some money up.

My father was valedictorian, an all state wrestler and a top ranked high school trumpet player. He went to Boston University for film making, but now does computer programming for a job. He is proof that just because you do not grow up with a lot, you can still do great things in life.

When I was in 4th grade, in 2005, my father was diagnosed with prostate cancer. Being only 10 years old, this was one of the scariest thing I could ever here. I didn’t know what to excpect. I thought nothing could hurt my dad, he was superman right? The doctors told me otherwise. He got surgery on my 11th birthday, May 17, 2005. My dad is fine now, but I still worry about him. I still worry it could come back.

Skip up 2 years, 2007. My father and I were on the way to a family vacation at the Jersey Shore. Everything was going great, we were just driving along, obeying the speed limit like always. My eyes were closed, thinking I would get some sleep so I was wide awake for the shore. Then bam. I was awoken by a crash to the car. My eyes were shut so I can not describe what I saw. I just know we spun and spun and spun, then suddenly stop. My father had stepped on the brake. I see the car next to us that had hit us, the bumpers broken, that’s it. The people in it, get out of the car and run. My dad screams some obscene words and it’s the first time I had ever heard him swear. He wasn’t the perfect man I thought he was, but he was still my hero. I look over his seat was almost on mine. He asks “are you ok?!“ and I say “yeah, I think, just some scratches. How about you?“ and he answers “yes, but you are more important. I’d rather me get hurt or die then you.“ those words will never leave my memory.

We climb out of the windows with some help by others. We then stand on the side of the road, silent. My dad calls my mom, telling her what happened. I talk to her and just brake down crying. Then the ambulance comes and straps us on these boards. I got my dad strapped in first, and it worried me because I thought he was severely injured. After hours at the hospital, we end up being fine. Just some bruises and aches.

My dad inspires me to do my best. He really is my superman. He cares more about his family then anything. My dad works hard to feed us and cloth us. I do not want to ever lose him.