The Marvel Comics superhero, Ironman, created a cold, hard suit of iron in order to protect himself while battling a world of evil. His ironclad protection worked wonders at keeping him safe from countless hurts, pains and injuries. Not only was his impenetrable armor capable of keeping hurt out, but it also came equipped to cause a great deal of harm to anyone who got in his way.
In real life, we don’t have indestructible armor suits to hide in. However, we often do quite the same thing by hardening our hearts, minds and emotions to the cold pains of an often cruel world. Just like Ironman, we get hurt a couple of times and go right to work on building our armor plating so sources of pain can never touch our soft interior again.
We often justify our armor as necessary to keep us from getting hurt, and we often us it offensively to tear out the hearts of those that we assume may hurt us before they ever have a chance to make any kind of a move. We take refuge in our armor, feeling secure from the reaches of the outside world. The problem is… living inside the armor is lonely and suffocating.
You see, living like Ironman provides a tough exterior which keeps the hostile world out, but it also keeps out the tender touches, warm embraces and gentle kisses of countless loved ones and acquaintances. Some get good at revealing their true identities to a handful that they trust, removing the armor briefly to share their vulnerability with family and a small circle of friends. However, as soon as the comfort zone is breached… WOOSH! back up goes the armor.
This is especially true when it comes to meeting strangers. For some reason, we humans have this ingrained fear that anyone we do not know is out to cheat, kill and destroy us, so most are quite good at throwing up the armor when new people are around. The problem with living in such a world is that everyone is cold, calculated and on their guard. Very difficult for the love to shine through those dark, iron suits.
Then, while we sit back behind our iron shielding and watch a cruel world killing and destroying itself, we tell ourselves that our armor is needed and should even be strengthened more. Besides, isn’t all that cruelty out there in the world what I am protecting myself from? Aren’t I justified in wearing my ironclad suit? Shouldn’t I turn a cold shoulder of iron to those who would dare try to get close to me? After all, they’re only trying to penetrate my armor so they can hurt me!
The sad fact is, the reason our world is in the shape it’s in is because so many have taken the Ironman attitude. Instead of love, tolerance, trust, compassion and sympathy, we exude a protective mentality that is distrustful of all around us. As genuine attempts to make contacts and friends are continuously met by that cold, iron stare of noninterest and suspicion, it rivets another layer of iron to the shielding.
People in the world aren’t born ruthless and cold. All start out as innocent, vulnerable babies who easily release feelings and emotions. It is a series of ironclad people in each one’s life that causes them to retaliate in kind by building a suit of armor.
Monsters are not born, they are made… and they are made by those with whom they come in contact throughout their lives. Those that have hurt them, taken advantage of them and treated them with Ironman coldness, often hurting first so that they themselves are not hurt. And when these wounded souls reach out for help, oftentimes they are met with more ironman attitudes of judgment and mistrust, all of which drive the person deeper into their suit of unfeeling armor.
I’m not speaking against armor. It is definitely a necessity in certain situations that come at us through life. However, my concern is that many become so comfortable with wearing their armor at all times that it becomes a second skin which cannot be shed. It is at this point that we start to become what it is that we fear; a cold, hard Ironman that seeks to resist feeling and cause pain before it is caused to us.
Love is an armor so much more powerful than iron. Love feels pain deeply, this is true, but it also absorbs the pain, grows stronger by doing so and then loves even deeper. Love reaches out and exudes a peace and trust to all people. Love is also deep in knowledge and reveals to us those who might want to harm us so that painful situations are often avoided.
My hope is that more and more souls would shed the iron armor and allow the love and light to shine to a world that appears to be growing darker… a world that desperately needs to feel such warmth again.
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