See Also:
Beginning of a FAMOUS Hero: The Rene Laennec Story.
Life Lesson #98 – Be Valuable, Not Important.
A long time ago when Sarah’s grandparents got married, they bought a farm, and that’s where Sarah’s dad was raised. He learned all about farming as he was growing up, then he went to college so he could learn even more about farming. Sarah was born on that same farm, and she loved it.
She had three close friends who lived in town. One girl’s dad was a doctor; another was a lawyer, and the third owned a big store. One Friday night, the friend whose father was a doctor invited the girls for a sleep-over. In the middle of dinner, her dad got a phone call telling him to come to the hospital right away. The girls were disappointed because he had planned to take them bowling later. One of the other girls said, “I’m glad my dad doesn’t have to get up from dinner to go to work.”
“That was a mean thing to say,” the doctor’s daughter said, “At least, he’s not just a farmer.”
Well, Sarah was caught totally off guard. “What’s wrong with being a farmer?” she asked.
Then before any more hurtful things could be said, the mother at the table spoke up.
“Girls, stop this right now,” she said. “Before you start pushing each other around about whose father has the best job, let’s just discuss this. We certainly need doctors and lawyers and storekeepers,” she said. “We also need a lot of other jobs—teachers, utility workers, sanitation workers, and the list just goes on and on. But a world without farmers? Our food comes from farms, and we have to eat to live. The truth is that everyone who does a community job and does it well is a HERO to all of us.” The girls looked at each other. That night they learned a little more about being HEROES.
– Jim Lord