The Portrait of John Cena in My Dining Room

In response to Dancing Elephants prompt 7 of 52

Going into preschool, my son chose his first backpack. It featured a sparkly image of John Cena in his standard wrestling attire, along with the catchphrase, “Hustle | Loyalty | Respect.”

I did not grow up watching or appreciating professional wrestling. To say that it seemed silly to me is a generous way of putting it. But my son learned about the WWE from his first best friend at daycare (a big fan of Ray Mysterio, like his dad). And so I came to know all the latest and greatest at the time: John Cena, Roman Reigns, The Undertaker, Kane, Seth Rollins, and so on.

If you’re like me, you might be surprised to find that many professional wrestlers are also really awesome humans. John Cena is a leader in this.

Since 2002, Cena has granted more than 650 wishes through the Make-A-Wish Foundation, setting a Guinness World Record (second place has granted fewer than 200 wishes). He has actively and publicly supported anti-bullying campaigns, breast cancer research, and the Black Lives Matter movement.

Have you seen his Love Has No Labels video?

What about that time he flew to Amsterdam to meet a teen who’s mom supported him during their evacuation from Ukraine by telling him that they were going to find John Cena?

There are countless videos of Cena doing adorable things. Do a search and watch a few — you’ll probably cry at least once.

And did you know that he also writes books?

When my son’s beloved John Cena backpack fell into disrepair, I couldn’t bear to part with it in its entirety: I had learned a lot about stereotypes and kindness from Mr. Cena. So, I saved the scrap of cloth that featured his gently smiling face and stuck it in a spare picture frame. It has lived on our bookshelf ever since.

Hustle. Loyalty. Respect.

Thanks to Sharing Randomly for providing the 7th prompt in the 52 week series from Dancing Elephants Press.

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