The Making of a Hero - Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, President of the the Republic of Indonesia, Time Magazine, 10 Oct 2005

Mr Yudhoyono wrote in his article about his personal definition of heroes, and there are 2 kinds: heroes who shine in the face of great adversity and those who do their work unceremoniously, unnoticed by many of us, but who make a difference in the lives of others.

He talked about a certain army general by the name of Surdiman, who was a larger than life hero in the President's eyes in the then humble days, and another by the name Catur, who is a lieutenant-colonel in the town of Aceh hardest hit by the tsunami that swept across months back.

Catur risked his life time and time again to rescue survivors from the tsunami but was only hit by news of his perished family members. He was griefed but he stayed at his post, and spent the very same whole day guiding residents to safety.

Mr Yudhoyono met Mr Catur during his visit and the latter did not even mention anything to the president, and it was only later that Mr Yudhoyono found out about the matter from Mr Catur's peers.

Then it was the story of Miss Butet Manurung, a lady who embarked on a nearly-impossible goal of eradicating illiteracy among the isolated tribes of the Sumatran jungle.

Mr Yudhoyono had also met teachers who would walk tens of miles each day to reach their school - all for the meager reward of some $20 a month and no doubt of plenty of grief from their students.

Yet they make the journey every day.

So he posed the questions: what is a hero? Who is a hero? Is it the decorated general who leads his army to victory, or the unknown soldier quietly obeying his orders? Is it the researcher who finds a cure for cancer, or the country doctor treating the sick? Should a hero be one who saves thousands of lives, or who comforts just one?

What drives them?

Duty? Determination? Perseverance?

Doubtless that they do play their parts, but it is love thats ultimately pushes them. It was love - a love for education, a love of humanity - that sent Butet Manurung to the jungle, and keeps her there. Love - for their fellow students - makes bearable the long miles those schoolteachers ealk each day. And love - for his community, for his country - drove Catur into the same perilous sea that took his family.

Mr Yudhoyono concludes with the following:

"Perhaps Catur did not set out to be a hero; no doubt he would rather have his family back. But circumstances stirred something in him, something he could not hold back. What Manurung does- giving up her way of life to fight illiteracy - is too extreme for some, but not to her. I often wonder when i meet these brave men and women who are our heroes: what would i do in the same situation? Would i rush out to those deadly waters if my family or my country needed me to? Would you?"