Before I started elementary school, my family had moved four times. As a result I didn’t have any close friends and always longed for having someone whom I could talk to. That is why when Mr. Paul Farris said “Welcome to the neighborhood!” with his bright and warm smile the first day we moved to Ann Arbor when I was five years old, he immediately became a special friend to me. What I didn’t expect is he also becomes my Personal Michigan Hero. Paul is a veteran and a mailman. He teaches me a hero can emerge from a battlefield, and can also transform our daily lives.
Paul doesn’t just deliver regular mail, he also brings small things to people who are in need, or simply picks up a conversation with people when they are feeling down and gives …show more content…
Welcome to the neighborhood!” Paul called out in a big booming voice with a bright smile. Summer became bearable knowing I would see Paul every afternoon. He gave me a small notepad and a pencil before school started. When my first-grade teacher asked us to write sentences using the colors, I wrote on my notepad “Green is the color of my mailbox and brown is the color of the face of my mailman Paul." I noticed Paul limp the first time we met, but it wasn’t until a chilly and rainy afternoon, I learned what happened. That afternoon had exceptionally bad weather. The rain came down like sheets and smeared the window panes with a thick coating of water. Then a completely soaked Paul showed up on the porch with a well-protected package. His wet clothes clung to his body like glue, and for the first time I saw Paul’s left leg was missing starting from mid-thigh all the way down. In place of it was a metal prosthetic leg. Looking into my anxious and puzzled eyes, Paul told me that he is a veteran who fought in the Vietnam War. While on the battlefield, Paul accidentally stepped on a land mine and lost most of his left leg. Felt like crying, I said, “Then why do you do this? You should not need to deliver mail for a
Paul doesn’t just deliver regular mail, he also brings small things to people who are in need, or simply picks up a conversation with people when they are feeling down and gives …show more content…
Welcome to the neighborhood!” Paul called out in a big booming voice with a bright smile. Summer became bearable knowing I would see Paul every afternoon. He gave me a small notepad and a pencil before school started. When my first-grade teacher asked us to write sentences using the colors, I wrote on my notepad “Green is the color of my mailbox and brown is the color of the face of my mailman Paul." I noticed Paul limp the first time we met, but it wasn’t until a chilly and rainy afternoon, I learned what happened. That afternoon had exceptionally bad weather. The rain came down like sheets and smeared the window panes with a thick coating of water. Then a completely soaked Paul showed up on the porch with a well-protected package. His wet clothes clung to his body like glue, and for the first time I saw Paul’s left leg was missing starting from mid-thigh all the way down. In place of it was a metal prosthetic leg. Looking into my anxious and puzzled eyes, Paul told me that he is a veteran who fought in the Vietnam War. While on the battlefield, Paul accidentally stepped on a land mine and lost most of his left leg. Felt like crying, I said, “Then why do you do this? You should not need to deliver mail for a