What would your super-power be?

Super-heroes; we all have a favourite one whose super-powers we envy. But, if you could choose only one super-power, what would it be?

This question had me thinking very hard, considering my different options. The first super-power that came to mind was flying. Just imagine being able to fly through the air, above the clouds, to get wherever you want to be, without the stress of having to negotiate heavy traffic and reckless drivers on the roads. But this fantasy quickly came to an end, as I realised that it wouldn’t work for me as I am scared of heights!

The next option I thought of was to read minds, or maybe having x-ray vision, as I am a very curious person by nature and these powers would help me to always be in the know. Several downsides here – do I really want to know what my journalists thought of that instruction, and will I recover from knowing the thoughts of my two teenage daughters? And the downside to x-ray vision? Well, people are strange, and that should be explanation enough.

My next choice on the list would definitely be being super-strong (something like The Hulk), but, yes, you guessed it, that would make me too much of a danger to society, especially coupled with my explosive temper! And, unlike The Hulk, I really would mind being shot at with dart guns or tracer missiles!

And, as I sat with this list, I started thinking, what is it that our world needs most? The answer is simple – kindness, love, acceptance and tolerance. Looking at society these days, seeing all the abuse aimed at animals, children, older people and the homeless, the intolerance and non-acceptance of other races, cultures or religions, I realised that we should think differently about what a super-power is.

It costs nothing to be kind to someone who is in a difficult situation; it costs nothing to show them some love by lending a helping hand to alleviate their discomfort. And, even though we all have different opinions or viewpoints relating to race, religion or culture, why can we not just accept our differences and live together in harmony? It would not cost us anything…

So, in conclusion, I decided to answer the question as follows: “The super-power I would like to have is to be known as someone who shows kindness, treats others with love, accepts those who think, feel and act differently and tolerates these differences without fighting about them.”

Until next week …