What's Your Super Power?

The other day, my family was sitting around having a typical LiBrandi conversation about I don't even remember what, and my son asked the question, "If you could have one super power, what would it be?" All sorts of answers came up. Invisibility. The ability fly. To sleep on demand (that one was mine). To read minds. The list goes on. It's easy to imagine life as Iron Man or Spider Man, full of impenetrable strength, tireless energy and the ability to get back up no matter what knocks us down or how hard.

I love Iron Man. I really just love Robert Downey Jr. 

Sophie's answer was "I would want the super power to fill things up."

Huh?

That's not a super power.

So I asked her why she would pick such an unusual (lame) super power.

"Well," she started off, "in a really practical way, I would never have to get up from the couch to fill my glass or get more of a snack, so that would be good.  And, if I had to talk to someone I really didn't want to talk to, I could fill up their bladder so they'd have to go to the bathroom, which would get me out of the conversation." Sophie is always no-nonsense.

"But," she continued, "if someone was hurting or causing pain in the world, I could fill them up with whatever they needed and make them happy.  It could stop crimes, hate, fear..."

I realized how profound her super power was. The power to fill what is empty. Replenish what is low. Cover what is cold. Erase what makes us less.

Don't we all already have this super power to some extent?  As a parent, it's what we try to do every day for our kids. Leave no void.  Make them full.

Imagine if we took that approach with everyone we met. I know I don't do it. Often, we are busy filling ourselves up.  We want more of everything.  More stuff, more experiences, more friends, more money. I know this is true of myself. I spend a lot of time thinking about the next thing I need; the outfit I want to buy; what's trending online; why I don't look like this or act more like that, when I can schedule another night out with friends.

But if we see everyone's anger or short temper or inability to be how we want them to be not as a character flaw, but as a cry to be filled with something perhaps only we can supply, then aren't we all better off?  Aren't we left feeling more connected?  Because we all need something.  No matter how much our parents tried or we try with our own children, they can't fill us alone. It's our job to continue the work of our families and promise to fill each other.

My super heroes who fill me up every day

The fact that we don't often do this doesn't make us bad people. It just means we're not super hero status.  We haven't fined tuned our innate super power of being a world class filler upper.

That is my wish for myself and for all of us.  Can we, for just one day, focus on filling up? On turning that day around for one person near us?  I promise to fill you up if you fill me up. And soon, our cup runneth over.

"But really," Sophie ended, "if we are talking traditional super powers, I don't know why everyone just doesn't pick shape shifter. You can then become anything you want. It's the ultimate super power."

Point taken. But since I can't shape shift, I will stick with being a filler upper.