My Hero, Batistuta

At some point as children, we look to heroes who provide us something our parents cannot. For me, that person was Batigol, the great Argentinian striker of the '90s.

Note: This story was updated to its book version in October 2023.

In Mrs. Squittieri’s history class during my eighth-grade year at PS 14, we read excerpts from Greek mythology and one day, in the way of great teachers past and present, she prompted us with the question “What does it mean to be a hero?” In the ensuing discussion, Mrs. Squittieri stepped …