“It’s fine to not be the invincible hero sometimes.”
– Mr. Lin Jie, I’m Really Not the Demon God’s Lackey

The exact circumstances surrounding this quote are a little complicated. For simplicity, I shall just say that he is speaking to a weathered veteran hero who has carried a terrible weight on his shoulders for a long time. He has done so without complaint, or any thought of himself at all, driven by his kindness, his deep desire to be strong for those around him. What he has never realized is that he might save those around him, but sometimes he, too, needs to be saved. It’s OK for him to be weak and normal on occasion, like everyone else. He’s not a god, after all.

Even the greatest of us need help sometimes. We need rest and safety and everything else that other people need. That’s why the communities which heroes protect exist in the first place, for mutual protection and benefit, including when the hero, who is just another man, needs it.

Many of us, I think, are going through life with the weight of the world on our shoulders. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, striving to be strong, independent, and serve those around us, but it wears on us sooner or later. The more we strive to carry everything alone, the more we are crushed beneath it all. We need each other, and we need to remember that we are just like each other.

I mean, if we try to be stronger than anyone else with our burdens, even while we try to help others in bearing theirs, well… isn’t that just another way of trying to be better than anyone else? Isn’t it the same as trying to be better than everyone else who breaks down and cries and is needy and whiny and selfish and needs to be saved on occasion?

It’s not a bad thing to need to be saved. To be weak. To need help. To need support and a shoulder to cry on. To need someone there who is just there for us, never tearing us down. It’s like needing food, water, and rest to maintain, or regain, our strength and vitality.

That’s just part of what it means to be human. There’s no shame in that.

It’s OK to just be a normal human who needs help.