21st Century Hero

I do not know what stuffs heroes are made of, but I am pretty sure they are exceedingly tough! 

^{My hero is Superman. He is all sleek; a tough and tenacious super crime buster who has got the muscles, the looks, the strength. I have a collection of big and miniature models, even glossy posters of the man of steel. For me, he is simply the hero of heroes.}

^{“Daddy, Daddy, I want to play with Manong Matthew’s toys.”} “Never can you play with my toys. Why don’t you settle with your matchbox cars and war tanks?”

^{"Matthew, lend your brother Linus your toys. He likes them too, and besides, you’re too old for Superman stuff. Here, help me with these wrenches.”}

^{There goes my Dad. He squirms at the idea that I still play with toys. He doesn’t even want to call me a boy anymore. He believes I’m already a man! And I hate it when he got me into doing grown-up things---fix the window, wash the car, move the furniture, and the most abhorable of all, babysit for Linus.}

^{It’s funny, but since you haven’t asked, my Dad has his own hero too!}

^{“You mean, Daddy, that such strong man ever exists?”}

²

^{Linus would listen to Dad with eyes wide and mouth open, as he tells and retells the same, old story about Samson. He would even act out at times, a robust man and everything that Samson is.}

^{One time, I saw Linus in his most hilarious act.}

^{“Uuughhh…uuughh…”}

^{“What are you doing, pinhead?”} 

“Run for your life, Manong Matthew, I’m going to tear down this building… watch out for those posts… uuughhh…”

^{Well, a hero indeed. He sure can pull the house down. But suddenly, a strange sound was heard.} Clanggg…thugguduggg… thwang…

^{And where is the hero of the house? You bet, it took him an hour to get out from under Dad’s study table.}

^*

^{My classmates too, have their choices of heroes.}

^{“Oh yeah, so you think Captain America can beat Spiderman? Without his shield he is never that good, don’t you think so, Matthew?”}

“My superhero is more popular than yours.”

^{“Who is your favorite hero, by the way?”}

 “Superman…”

 “Superman? But I heard he’s sick right now.”

 “He is not sick. Superman never gets sick you  dummy.”

 “Oh, yeah, so you think I’m dumb? Here take this. And let’s see what your Superman can do for you." 

Although a loud, boisterous laughter echoed through the hallway, it never hit Matthew's eardrum. What he knows is that pain has hit him hard on his abdomen.

^{“You’re a brute, Anton, you’ll pay for this.”}

^* 

^{“Now, listen pupils, you are to stick with your buddy for this entire ecotrip. Be sure to be together, and don’t get lost!”}

“Haw, haw, look who is pretty Bettina’s buddy!”

 “Miracle of Miracles, if it isn’t the Lord Matthew, the knight of the lost decade, the hero of the space age…”

 “Don’t mind them Matthew. Here, hold this map for me.”

^{Bettina is the cutest girl in the class. She is chic, lovely and kindhearted.}

^{“These are exotic leaves, Matthew. I haven’t seen anything like this before.”}

^{“Indeed, our teacher will surely reward us for such a find.”}

^{Bettina was engrossed with gathering more leaves, when suddenly she slipped through as a slimy rock went five feet down below!}

^{“Help, Matthew, help me!”}

 “Bettina, grasp on something.”

^{I found her clutching a fresh vine beside a large rock she fell on. I was so nervous I didn’t know what to do. I surveyed the place and called for our other classmates.}

^{“Help, we need help here. Somebody, help us.”}

^{The smart side of me, of course, never goes out of fire. Although I’m terribly nervous, I managed to think of my next move.}

 ^{“Matthew, please help me.”}

^{I jumped over a large, sturdy branch and swung myself with it. With me weight, I pulled the branch downward to reach Bettina.}

^{“Here Bettina, grab the end of this branch. Just relax, here. Easy now, easy…”}

^{How long Bettina and I were suspended on that branch seemed like eternity to me. But finally, I saw her through her difficult ascent to that rocky cliff.}

^{“Oh, Matthew, thank you, you saved my life.”}

^{Surprised and stupefied, I felt her arms gently wrap around my neck.} “You’re my hero! 

Still awestruck with the sudden event that happened, I did not hear this loud one coming: 

"Tsuuuppppp…” 

Wow, I can’t just believe it happened!

^*

^{Well, I still don’t know what stuffs heroes are made of, but now I’m quite sure that every one has a hero right inside his heart.}                    

^{(This is a declamation piece written by Marvin Cadornigara. This should not be used in any performance without the expressed permission from the author.)}