After watching some episodes on DVD of both Batman and Spider-Man, a contrast between the two became obvious to me. While Batman is typically considered to be a loner, I'd say this is really kind of an unfair label that is put on him. Cary Friedman in his great book "Wisdom from the Batcave" writes of Batman, "Where would Bruce Wayne/the Batman be without Dick Grayson and Alfred Pennyworth? They have saved his life and his sanity over the years...The Batman could not do what he does without the assistance of his friends" (that's a quote from chapter 14). I agree with Friedman.
On the other hand, if you want to talk about someone who I believe is a better candidate to be called a loner, I would suggest Spider-Man. Think about it. He does everything alone. Yes, he has his Aunt May, Mary Jane Watson, and Harry Osborn, but none of these people know that he is Spider-man (usually that's the case, but in some versions Mary Jane knows). Spider-Man doesn't have a Robin or an Alfred to bounce things off of. He can't say, "I just tangled with this villain who did this. What do you think I should do about this?" He has to figure it all out on his own. He is a loner.
Why does Spider-man choose to live this way? He doesn't want to share his secret life to his close friends and family to protect them. While this is admirable, he also suffers for it. Speaking for myself, when I have to keep my problems and difficulties to myself they seem twice as bad as they really are. Whenever I've shared an issue I'm facing, the burden of it is lessened (and of course my challenges are nothing compared to Spider-Man's).
Because of today's blog thought, I've been inspired anew to share my life with my friends and my family - like Batman does - and not keep everything bottled up like Spider-Man.
Kevin Bauer
(Galatians 6:2)
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