Some heroes wear capes while others wear uniforms, scrubs, or a white coat.

Don’t get me wrong, I like my Marvel superheroes but I’m even more fortunate for the heroes who don’t wear capes. The men and women who save and change lives every time they go to work are the heroes that mean the most to me.

I’ve never laid eyes on a “swoop-in-save-the-day” superhuman in a cape, but I have met and been influenced by many everyday heroes. During one of the hardest times of my life, I learned that my superheroes were just normal people, people who went home to their own family at night and didn’t realize their successes. Although their successes happened daily, they never realized them because their life-changing, life-saving moments weren’t televised, it was just another aspect of their job.

This goes out to the nurse that changed my life, the nurse who took the time to walk the halls with me that evening.

I wasn’t in a great place and you knew that as well as I did, and when I asked you for the medicine to take the edge off, you asked if I would rather take a walk. Of course, I was confused. It wasn’t your job to take a walk with me, it was your job to slap the band-aid on, or offer the medicine to heal the pain.

At first, I hesitated. I felt myself about to say no to your offer, but it was during my hesitation that you insisted. That within the next hour we should take a walk, and that is a walk I think back on often.

We began our walk down the hallway, turning when we reached the end of the unit, we walked many laps like this--back and forth for quite some time and the comfort that came wasn’t anything that medicine could give me.

You asked me what brought me to where I was and I told you like I had explained many times before to each of the doctors and nurses I met throughout my stay, but with you it was different. You were listening because you knew my healing had to take place on more levels than the medicine could give. The others understood that too, but it seemed they were more concerned with the drugs.

I remember you telling me that you had broken parts as well, and I didn’t feel so alone anymore. I didn’t feel that my success was impossible anymore, I didn’t feel like I couldn’t become what I always wanted to be because of where I fell short. After all, you were one of the head nurses of my unit. You overcame the hard parts of your life, and you were standing next to me having a legitimate conversation with me and it wasn’t because it was your job. It was your job to give me my medicine. It was your job to make sure I remained safe and actually take the pills you gave, but you took steps beyond your job description to make a difference.

It was this conversation. This minute detail in your day, that probably seemed like nothing, brought about a small change in my life. It was the first time in months that I was actually confident that I would make it through this war. No, you may not have swooped down and saved me from the ledge, at least not in reality. But you did bring me a few steps away from the edge of the craggy mountaintop and had me sit down so I could look out and see the beauty, just really take it in. You showed me that sometimes successes come out of the times that you feel like your speeding toward an imminent failure.

You showed me that superheroes don’t just wear capes, but they sometimes wear scrubs too.

We have all had someone who has come into our lives that have helped us change our direction. They helped us realize that life is more than the downfalls we face and the mistakes we make. It is these people who are a Godsend to us. You are our neon EXIT sign in the darkness, and it is because of this we thank you.

My sincerest thank you goes out to all of the heroes that don’t wear capes or possess super abilites but save the day just the same. The firefighters, ambulance drivers, police officers, doctors, nurses, therapists and everyday friends that come into our lives and make a difference are our superheros.