The Spirit of Adventure

On my first post, I attempted to explain why I created the Worlds Apart series. I tried to explain where some of the inspiration came from, but in this entry, I'd like to talk about what drives the author of any fictional work to write.

If you really think about it, we really shouldn't be inspired by any story this is fiction. After all, fiction is, by definition, something that is untrue. And if we are attempting to seek any higher truth in our life, fiction would seem a backward step in that direction.

However, I think fiction gives us that which we are looking for: heroes. Heroes are people who have been gifted, but do not use their gifts for selfish gain. In fact, they use their gifts to put themselves deliberately in harm's way so that others might live. Examples include Superman, Batman, Spider-man, Frodo Baggins, and even Neo from The Matrix. All of these characters live a life of adventure by sacrificing a part of themselves for others. They have inspired many, and none of them are real.

When I was in high school, I created my own little super hero group. They were based on people that I know, blended with ideas from (and some cases, ripped-off) from the comic books that I used to read. Looking back, I don't think I created these characters and this superhero world as a distraction. On the contrary, I had plenty of problems that I was dealing with at the time, and these stories inspired me to face my life.

I can't really explain why. I believe it has something to do with my own problems seeming so large, and perhaps it was more comfortable to play in a world where the problems were even bigger. Maybe it was the idea of standing up to evil and injustice and winning, instead of comprimising and retreat.

Of course, real life seems mundane and unfantastic compared to the stories of fantasy and science fiction. However, that is only what it appears. The Bible is full of stories that seem unbelievable, but they truly happened. These stories are so good, that they break the conventions of stories. Jesus is the hero, but you don't see Him come in a room and beat up the bad guys. In fact, he is willing to resist the urge to be powerful, and lets the bad guys beat him up.

This is the hero that I strive to be. Life is full of punches that we have to learn to roll with, and very little (yet still a lot) of reward exists in this life. So though I may never beat an army, I live a Christian life, which is fraught with fiery darts and temptations that I face daily. Every once in a while, I look back and see that I live a life of adventure.

This is why I wrote this, because the spirit of adventure is in us all. Some of us kill it as we grow up, believing that our lives are meant to be mundane. They are meant to be spectacular, and death will be the ulimate climax for this life. Then the adventure begins anew.