T

he word "hero" seems to be everywhere right now, with proposals to name late former presidents Abdurrahman or "Gus Dur" Wahid and Soeharto national heroes.

But what really makes a hero?

Pop star Mariah Carey once sang that each of us is a hero: "There's a hero if you look inside your heart, you don't have to be afraid of what you are."

That's one view. Daniel, a 10-year-old, has his own perspective.

"I like Spider-Man. He's so cool. He can swing from one building to another with his spiderwebs," he says, wide-eyed. "He's also a good man. He helps heaps of people."

Older people find their heroes very much in the real world.

For instance, Intan Mustika, 30, an accountant with one son, says her parents are her ultimate heroes.

"They struggled for me from the time I was a baby until I now that have my own child. They really care about me," she says firmly.

Heroes, she adds, are people who struggle and are willing to sacrifice what they have, physically or materially, for somebody else, without expecting anything in return.

She admits she didn't realize what heroes her parents were until she had her own baby.

"Now, I know and realize how much they have done for me. We do anything for the ones we love."

Another mother, Cahyani, also names her parents heroes. "I started to consider them as my heroes when I first knew love," she says.

"No matter how deep my love for my lover was, I realized I loved my parents more. ... They *fought' for me since I was a baby," she says, adding she used to idolize the national hero Wolter Monginsidi.

According to Sanata Dharma University historian Baskara Tulus Wardaya, heroes were those people who give us strength.

"It's not a matter of the past, but the present and the future. It is how they inspire us," he says.

"Heroes should also have an aspect of self-sacrifice. They should want to put the needs of society or nation above everything. Another important factor is heroes must not be involved in any illegal acts."

How about movie stars, pop stars, supermodels, politicians or professional athletes?

"There is a difference between influential public figures and official heroes. Celebrities and athletes can be included as influential public figures," Baskara says.

Official heroes are recognized by the government through a special board established by the President, as stipulated by the 2009 Law on the Granting of Honorary Titles.

"We should check first who proposes someone as a national hero, and their motives. If the person has had a good effect on us, why not? But if the proposal upsets people, then what's the point?" he adds.

Baskara notes that comic book superheroes can be idols.

"The positive thing is they help children to be creative and imaginative, but this is negative if it drives children into a consumptive pattern," he added.

After all, not everyone has what it takes to be a real hero, and maybe that is why society throws the label out all too easily.