Natchez lost one of its true superheros last week. And although she probably never wore a cape, her super powers were unmistakable; her courage as deep as the Mississippi River is long.

On the surface, Harriet Smith didn’t look like a hero.

She wasn’t particularly muscular or intimidating looking.

In fact, Smith, who died Wednesday at age 82, was quite meek looking.

But Smith’s heroic prowess came from behind her bright, wide eyes.

The retired housekeeper, mother of four and grandmother of 12 had the inner strength that most of us can only hope to achieve.

After spending an entire lifetime gripped by the cruel hand of illiteracy, Smith, then in her 70s, decided to make a change in her life.

At a time when most folks her age are preoccupied with their impending death, Smith was still living and learning.

Smith publicly admitted her inability to read and enrolled in the Retired Senior Volunteer Program in Natchez.

Reading was, in her words, &uot;something I always had in my mind to do.&uot;

And she did something about it.

She proceeded to learn the English language that for decades had immersed her in a world of frustration.

And no doubt, it wasn’t easy for her. Critics and naysayers were everywhere, but she paid them no attention.

&uot;Folks told me, ‘You’re too old to learn,’&uot; she said. &uot;I know I’m old, but why give up? As long as I’m breathing, I’m gonna be trying.&uot;

And Smith did more than merely take a stab at learning.

She excelled at it.

Slowly she began learning to read.

Her world would change forever.

Smith’s story of overcoming literacy after decades was so poignant, so moving that she was chosen as a 1999 Statewide Mississippi Ageless Hero in the Love of Learning category sponsored by Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi.

Eventually her tenacity for life would help her become one of only six National Ageless Heroes selected out of 6,500 national nominees.

Her award was presented to her in a special ceremony in Chicago by former President George Bush and his wife Barbara.

No doubt it was a feat she never dreamed would come from the burning desire to learn how to read.

It has been said, by a number of wise, learned people, that most of our failures in life come from within ourselves.

Our own self-doubt and our own lack of self-esteem are often the biggest obstacles in life.

Through the decades, Smith didn’t let such mental road blocks stop her on her quest.

&uot;I just never did turn the hope aloose,&uot; she said.

And thank God she didn’t.

Because the example she showed through the way she lived and learned was far greater than merely overcoming illiteracy.

Smith’s true legacy comes in what she tried to teach us all – that every day of life is a sweet apple that we are intended to savor as if it might be our last.

Regardless of how young or old, how rich or poor, or how educated one is, the point of life is never to quit living and never give up.

And Smith said that through her actions and through her words.

&uot;When you get in your mind you can’t do something, you’re wrong,&uot; she said. &uot;You can do anything you set your mind to.&uot;

Superman couldn’t have said it any better.

Kevin Cooper is managing editor of The Democrat. He can be reached at (601) 445-3541 or at kevin.cooper@natchezdemocrat.com.