Have You Used Your Superpowers Today?

A friend on Facebook asked me this week “What do you do all day?”  which I am sure was prompted by the fact that I spend way too much time online.

But this simple question from someone I barely know gave me pause, and I thought about it for a couple of hours before I responded.  My eventual answer was posted in a Facebook update:

Isn’t it obvious?  I use my superpowers to fight the forces of evil!

I know that my answer provided some chuckles for other Facebook friends, who indicated their appreciation by clicking the “like” button…but I was really only partly joking.

Something most people don’t know about me is that I am a Fangrrl. I love comic books, have read various titles throughout my life, and would even go as far as to say that one comic series in particular had a HUGE influence on my life. (yes, I know – my inner geek is showing.)

One of the things about comic book heroes is that they have Superpowers. That’s what makes them different from the average person. In the comic I have loved for the past 30 years, (Elfquest), the characters’ superpowers run the gamut. There are healers,  shape-changers, flyers, and telepaths, to name a few. The story’s main character, though, doesn’t have typical magic. He has a much more subtle superpower: he can accept change, and looks for new ways of doing things.

That might not seem like much…and for most of you, I’m sure that you are thinking that it doesn’t even sound like much of a superpower at all. But I might debate that.  I’d like you to consider such a non-traditional superpower as you think about yourself for a moment and see if you can figure out what your own superpowers are.

My point is that everybody has things they are good at. Everybody has strengths. Whatever it is that you are good at – THAT is your superpower. Just like in the comics, should you decide to use it, you will be able to achieve heroic ends.

I challenge you to define your own superpowers, and determine whether or not you are using them to fight the forces of evil…or whether you have gone to the dark side by letting them lie dormant.

Here are my powers that are super:

Spelling

Understanding

Purpose

Empathy

Research

…and here’s what I use them to do:

Petition

Organize

Write

Educate

Rescue

…and the things they help me fight:

Fear

Ignorance

Greed

Hatred

Torture

Exploitation

Violence

Inhumanity

Lawlessness

Remember, having superpowers comes with a cost. Most super heroes have secret identities (check), no social life (check), and major super villain problems (check)!

And once you know you have superpowers, the knowledge comes with the great responsibility of using them to save the world.

Tell me in comments what your superpowers are , and what you are doing with them! And please, use them for good, not evil.

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