Super Leaper

He was naked, he was alone, it was dark. The chill of hopelessness filled him so he curled into a fetal position and sat in silence until he heard a voice from the outside.

“Hey, are you in there?”

He ignored it and wrapped his arms tighter around himself.

“I know you can hear me, don’t you want to be free?”

Free? He knew he would never be free and he would die inside of the walls surrounding him.

“C’mon Fani, you have to help if you want out of that prison.” He lifted his head up and looked towards the wall.

“How do you know my name?”

“I know lots about you and I am here to help you. We can leap over those walls together. Would you like to give it a try? C’mon just take my hand and trust me, I gave you superpowers and I would love to show them to you.”

Fani studied the solid brick walls around him, they disappeared into the shadows overhead. There was no way he could jump up into the unknown darkness and win his freedom. There was no superpower that would get him over these walls, he wasn’t Superman or Spiderman.

He was afraid this was just another cruel trick that would lead to failure and more pain. He could almost hear the mocking laughter about him having a superpower. Nope, he already had enough pain and disappointment in his life so he retreated away from the wall and curled tightly on the cold floor. It was quiet on the outside and Fani wished his tormentor would go away. He listened for retreating steps but flinched when he heard a knock on the wall.

“I know you feel alone and hopeless but I can give you hope. All you have to do is let me know you want it by banging on that wall.”

Fani sighed and decided to comply, at least whoever it was would stop haranguing him. He reached out and lightly tapped the wall. He had to close his eyes as the walls came crashing down around him.

A loud clanging reverberated through the room and he was startled awake. He was greeted by a water stained white ceiling when he opened his eyes. Hopelessness and dread returned as he remembered where he was.

Mrs. Jones was standing in the large room clanging on a pot with a wooden spoon.

“Wake up you losers, it’s time for another day of fun.”

Her jowls bounced in time with her shrill shriek. Fani grimaced at the sight of her grimy robe. He wondered how long that dried egg had been clinging to the faded blue fabric.

“Get up you lazy slackers and come downstairs for breakfast.”

She stormed out of the bedroom and slammed the door behind her. The other four boys got out of their beds without a word. No one said anything or made eye contact as they silently dressed for the day and headed towards the door.

Fani paused before following the other boys down stairs. He sat pondering his dream until the pleasant silence was broken by the sound of Mrs. Jones screaming his name.

“Fani, get your butt down here, NOW.”

He plodded down the stairs and slid quietly into an empty wooden chair.

Mrs. Jones glared at him then bowed her head and prayed.

“Lord, I thank you for these amazing boys and I ask that they all have a great day and bless this food that I have worked so hard to prepare.”

It dawned on Fani that her prayers never seemed to match her actions. Was she trying to hide something from God?

Breakfast was another bowl of greasy oatmeal. Each morning Fani wondered how someone could make oatmeal greasy.

The room was filled with the sound of clanking spoons and slurping as the boys consumed their watery oatmeal. As usual James just sat staring off into space ignoring his breakfast. One of the older boys tried to steal a piece of toast off his plate but James pushed his hand away so quickly that Fani barely saw it move. Mrs. Jones got up and slapped James so hard it knocked him out of his chair and gave him a bloody lip. The room was deathly quiet as Fani got up and helped James back to the table. He picked up the fallen chair and gently guided James into his seat. Mrs. Jones gave all the boys a challenging glare. “Anyone else want a little love this morning?”

Fani wanted desperately to scream at her and tell her just what he thought about her phony love. He had been thinking about calling Child Protection Services for months but he was afraid of what would happen if he did. The nurse at the hospital had told him to trust her as she called Child Protection Services after his father had beat him so bad he ended up in the hospital. His mom had blamed him for the beating and laughed at him when he cried. The police had come to the hospital and placed him in this home where things were worse than before. So he sat there and quietly choked down his slimy oatmeal with the rest of the boys.

The hard slap from Mrs. Jones seemed to wake James up and he started one of his usual nonsensical rants.

“It rained last night but no one noticed,

Concealed in the darkness,

To hide the coming storm,

Sleeping in their silent rooms,

Man, what a bummer,

Wake up , wake up,

The silent alarm tolls.”

He turned, stared at Fani and said,

“Your superpower is leaping,

Not a curse,

But sublime,

Leap, oh quiet one,

Leap, and you will fly.”

Mrs. Jones stopped him right there.

“Okay James, that’s enough mumbo jumbo for this morning. Shut up and eat your oatmeal.”

All day at school Fani kept thinking about the dream and what James said to him. He remembered reading somewhere that a leaper was someone who spent a long time observing things before acting. A leaper would sit back and gather information and then act when they knew it was prudent. The article gave the example of a kid who sits observing for a long time at school dances but never participates. Then suddenly the kid shocks everyone by jumping up and going all out on the dance floor. It reminded Fani about Jesus telling his followers that they would sit down and figure out how much it would cost to build a tower before they started the project. Otherwise they might get part way through the construction and not have enough money left to finish the tower. Fani understood that part, he saw himself as a leaper and knew it was a good thing. But how could leaping be a superpower? Sure, Superman could leap over tall buildings with a single bound but this was different.

Fani was pondering what it all meant when the voice of Mr. Pettigrew broke through his thoughts, “Fani Mosely, are you with us today?”

He grinned sheepishly and asked him to repeat the question. Mr. Pettigrew returned his smile.

“We were talking about how history repeats itself. Can you think of any historical examples where a society blamed its’ problems on a certain group or class of people instead of seeking real solutions to their issues?”

Fani chuckled when he heard the question and wondered who was to blame for his own problems. Mr. Pettigrew nodded his head and laughed as well.

“I know that is quite a question Fani but I would love to hear your insight.”

Fani had a hard time believing that Mr. Pettigrew actually wanted to hear what he had to say. Normally he would have just shrugged his shoulders and kept quiet even when he knew the answer.

His teacher was doing his best to encourage Fani.

“C’mon Mosely I have read your essays and I know you can answer this, why don’t you take a leap of faith and tell us what you think.”

Fani was shocked that his teacher used the term, “Take a leap of faith,” there was that word again. He noticed that everyone in the class was staring at him. Some of his classmates seemed ready to beat him down but others seemed friendly and interested. He noticed Amanda Ruiz was giving him a warm smile and his heart skipped a beat. That was all the encouragement he needed. He had sat here in class knowing the answers and held back long enough.

“Well Mr. Pettigrew, there are many examples of people being scapegoated throughout history. Of course everyone knows about Hitler and the Jews. Then we have Nero, one of the worst leaders in ancient Rome who claimed it was the Christians who set Rome on fire.He blamed the Christians for the decline of the Roman Empire, when in fact much of the decline was caused by his poor leadership. There are so many examples of groups of people who were culturally different, racially different or different from the societal norm being blamed for problems that they themselves did not cause. Dictators and ruthless leaders love to create a common enemy to get the populace to rally around them. We can even see some of that happening in our own culture today.

Blaming others can also be personal. How many of us blame our school when we get bad grades? Adults sometimes blame their spouses, their boss at work or that guy down the street instead of taking personal responsibility. Even in the worst situation we always have options to try and do better even when things seem hopeless.

Fani felt like his heart was going to beat out of his chest and he was holding back tears, he had done it. It was really scary revealing something about his personal life and he wondered if anyone had picked up on it. He had been pondering whether he should speak up all year and finally he had taken a leap and done it. It was amazing, he felt so free.

There was silence for a moment as the other students wondered why the quietest guy in the classroom had suddenly spoken up. Then the murmurs started. Fani could hear some of the students joking that he could actually talk. Others were talking about what he had said, some agreeing with him and others arguing that he was wrong. Mr. Pettigrew let the discussions go on for a while before he got everyone’s attention.

“Those were some good examples Fani. Some people may not agree with you but there are times when it is good to speak up. You have given us all something to think about. We will continue this discussion tomorrow. Have a good night everyone.”

Fani felt like a new man when he walked out of the classroom. He realized that his ability to observe and then leap into action was how God had created him. He was who he was and he decided to embrace leaping as his superpower.

His mouth went dry when he saw Amanda and two of her friends approaching him in the hallway. He had so wanted to talk to her all these months but had never had the courage to do so. What if she rejected him?

He remembered his dream and the need to trust, he hoped he had the faith to rely on his superpower to take another leap.

He heard a voice saying,”Hi Amanda,” and was shocked when he realized it was his voice.

“Hi Fani, it was really nice to hear you speak out in class. I really enjoyed what you had to say.”

“Thanks Amanda.”

With that she strolled away with her two friends. Fani knew it wasn’t much but it was still a great leap for him.

“Lord, thank you for speaking to me this morning. Help me to reach out to you and trust you to be with me and set me free from my own fears.”

He also knew it was time to do something about the abusive foster home he was living in. His superpowers could even overcome his fear of Mrs. Jones and Child Protection Services. He had observed long enough and had enough information about how Mrs. Jones abused her foster children to put an end to her mistreatment . Especially kids like James who were unable to defend themselves. It was time to take another leap of faith. He would get in touch with CPS as soon as possible.

As he walked home he started thinking that everyone must have been created with some kind of superpower. He wondered what Amanda’s superpower was. Maybe it was her sweet, encouraging smile. Then, he remembered reading, “Love conquers all things” and he realized that love must be the greatest superpower of them all. He said it out loud and laughed. Fani felt a knock on his heart and heard, “I have come to set the captives free” the words filled him with a warm embrace of hope. He knew that things would never be the same.