Walking through the grocery store with my husband, I came to a screeching halt in front of the magazine rack. My actions caused a minor collision as well as disapproving stares, but I couldn’t help myself. Something had caught my eye and caused my soul to flutter joyfully.

Pure elation flooded me.

Right there in front of me was Harrison Ford on the cover of Vanity Fair. But it wasn’t just Harrison Ford on the cover. It was his alter-ego, archaeologist extraordinaire, Indiana Jones. My all time favorite hero!

I picked up the magazine and read the article, which was about the upcoming new Indy movie. Too engrossed to pay attention to my own rudeness, I muttered an unimpressive, “Excuse me,” to those I blocked. My husband, who is not known for his patience, left me flipping through the glossy pages of the magazine.

I was like a pig in heaven, rolling around blissfully in slop, lost in the moment.

I loved Indy from the first moment he appeared on the screen in Raiders of the Lost Ark.

Indy is wildly foolish, fearless, moralistic, smart and funny. In addition, he’s an ARCHAEOLGIST!

Of course, I already liked Harrison Ford because of his portrayal of Han Solo in Star Wars, but because I attended UC Berkeley as an archeology student, I felt Indy had been created just for me. I soooooo much wanted to be Indy–in female form, of course–and although life took me in another direction, George Lucas and Harrison Ford allowed me to go on incredible adventures with Indy.

Indy is the epitome of a reluctant hero. The character doesn’t see himself as a hero, which makes him even more appealing. Indy frequently shows fear during his adventures and this makes him exceedingly attractive, in a cute, unobtrusive way. Even better, although Indy dreams of fame and fortune like anyone else, he teaches his love-struck students about the importance of preserving artifacts. And he proves he practices what he preaches, at least once in each movie. And each time I have given a great sigh of pure unadulterated love. One time, I actually hoisted my fist in the air and cheered.

Those are my favorite moments–when we all get to see that under his rough exterior and bull whip, there beats a heart of gold.

My favorite Indy movie is Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. Being a student of the middle ages, I was up to my neck in pig heaven slop when it was released. It’s the only movie I ever stood in line to a buy ticket for. But for my favorite hero, I’d go to the ends of the earth.

So at the grocery store, I read part of the article, then, deciding I had managed to annoy more then just a few shoppers, I caught up with my husband in the cereal aisle. I gleefully held up the magazine. My husband said absolutely nothing but proceeded to guide me through the real adventure of deciding what cereal to buy for the week.

The articles and pictures waited another forty-five minutes as we cruised the aisles. Well, I really didn’t cruise– I hurried. It was probably one of the fastest shopping trips in recent months. I just wanted to get home to read more about my favorite archaeologist.

As a writer, I love to create heroes. As a reader of books, I love to discover new heroes I can admire. As a movie buff, I’m very selective of which big screen heroes are worthy of my respect. Of course, I usually compare a potential hero to Indy. I don’t use spread sheets during this calculation, but close to it.

I can’t wait until May when the movie will be released. I’ll stand in line again to buy a ticket. Or I may even order my ticket ahead of time on line. Either way, I’ll be there when it opens, and probably a couple of times after that. Then I’ll get the DVD. And the whole time, I’ll subject my husband to the wonderful details that spark my naive archaeological ideals.

QUESTION OF THE DAY:

Who is your all time favorite hero and why?