Never Grow Up

I've come to believe that it is a dangerous thing to meet your heroes. Often times we put famous people in an unreasonable place where they can't help but fall short in reality. Living here in the United States, I didn't hear a number of the scandalous stories about Chan through the years. As a younger person very enamored with his movie persona, I probably would have been angry about some of his actions. I had put him on that high shelf. Over the years, I have come to see that famous people are much like the rest of us. They do things that are selfish or shortsighted and sometimes, like the rest of us, they look back on those things are regret them and hopefully learn from them.

To me, his stories have a ring of honesty about them. In some ways, I feel sorry for him as he has sacrificed so many personal relationships to make movies for us to enjoy. I'm sure his story is not unique in this way. I personally find that connecting with family is a greater reward than any I can get from work.

I read in his story a desire to make the world a better place. A place where one person is not more important than another, where everyone is treated with respect until they show they will not return that respect. I see his belief that people who start down the wrong road can change directions and find new life. I also see open, generous giving.

I've been a Jackie Chan fan for 25 years now. Hard to believe my uncles were watching his movies when I was a baby! Still, in reading this book, although I see how Jackie has his shortcomings in the past and has grown to lament them and try to make things right, he appears to be trying to be the kind of person he displays on screen. I hope that in the end, I will be remembered more for my generosity and respect for others than for the ways I've been a jerk.