My Rainbow-Haired Warrior

[Serujuunin]

Some of you may have already read this when I entered it into WA's Favourite Wrestler competition, but recently a conversation arose in which a few people wondered why I continue to defend Jeff Hardy, and rather than explain it to them, I decided to respost it here.

While some people may not agree with me or my views, this is a true and very personal story with a very deep meaning to me, and I would appreciate if any potential comments remain civil. I have no intention of sparking a controversial debate.

My Rainbow-Haired Warrior

The Charismatic Enigma. The Rainbow-Haired Warrior. He's even been called The Legend Thriller.

It's no secret that out of all the possible men and women I could chose, both past and present, that I've chosen Jeff Hardy not only as my favourite wrestler, but as a role model.

Many people would criticize my decision to look up to Jeff and aspire to be like him. All they see is a man who has made mistakes. But don't we all make mistakes? And aren't we all entitled to forgiveness? Yes, he's made mistakes, as have you, and as have I.

The fact that he is undoubtedly human, not some infallible Superstar that seems to be superhuman, is the very reason why he's stood out to me as someone that deserves my praise and admiration. While I do not condone his actions of late, I will still support him because of what he’s done for me.

Since before I can remember, I've always been drawn to Jeff as an athlete. When The Hardy Boyz were in their prime, I was always drawn to his high-risk offense, his character, and his appearance. As a kid he always dreamed of making it in the WWE, but he was always told he was too small, that he just wasn't right for professional wrestling. They were looking for bigger men; your Triple H's, your Rock's, and other guys that were physically domineering. But that never stopped him. He kept working and working, and eventually he got signed to a WWE contract. Even still, people told him he would never make it big. He just wasn't right. People were thrown off by his individuality, not only inside the ring, but outside of it. He didn't fit the mould, he just didn't seem to be the type that would truly be successful in the WWE. But he kept trying. He pushed towards a dream and never let those that spoke ill of him drag him down. Yes, he had his downs. Like any human being, he fell. But, unlike most people, who would simply give up, thinking "maybe they were right, maybe I'm just not cut out for this", he kept going. He picked himself up and just kept going. But even when he made it big, even when he became a household name with his brother Matt, or even during his frequent runs as the Intercontinental Champion, people still said "Jeff man, you're just not good enough to make it to the top of the mountain. You're just not good enough to grab that brass ring."

And most people believed it. Even I did. But Jeff didn't. He knew something that a lot of people still fail to recognize. He knew that it's not how much talent you have, or who you know, it's how hard you work and how much you believe in yourself that really matters. He knew that if you really believed in yourself and pushed yourself to your limits, and even beyond them, that you could achieve anything you wanted.

Most people might even say that that's the kind of lesson you'd expect to hear from an after school special or a kid's movie, claiming that it's simply a delusion for the people that aren't good enough to make it on talent alone. But on December 14th, 2008, he took that idea, that belief, and made it real, by defeating two men that most would say are two of the best in the industry in Triple H and Edge. He gave people like me hope in doing so, by proving that it doesn't matter who you are or how good you are, but how determined you are. He proved to me and to many more people all over the world, I'm sure, that even if you don't fit in with the rest of the world, that you can achieve greatness by being yourself. He didn't let his fear of failure overcome his desire to achieve something. He used that fear as a fuel, to push himself even further and tell himself that he could do whatever he wanted. He wanted nothing more than to prove to himself that he had what it took to be great. And now, he is one of the most well-known men in the industry, with a lot of smaller guys looking up to him and his brother for the things they accomplished. He became an inspiration to guys all over the world that they could succeed in an industry like professional wrestling where there is a somewhat formulaic approach to success. Even if you don't fit the formula, you can still do amazing things.

He also taught me to forget the mistakes of the past, and to move on, to learn from them. Anybody is capable of making mistakes, as he has, but a truly strong person is able to learn from these and move on, instead of dwelling on it and allowing that one mistake to colour your perspective. There is no reason to dwell on these mistakes, because life is too short, and to make the most of it you must appreciate every day, every opportunity you’re given. He taught me to be thankful for everything I have, because it could vanish in a heartbeat. You friends, your family, your career… All of it could disappear in an instant, and you would never have known how much you loved and appreciated them until they were gone. He taught me to tell my friends and family how much I love them all the time, because there could come a day where I would not be able to tell them.

He taught me to be my own person, and to never change no matter who demands it of me. The only person that controls what I think and who I am is ME, and I never would have discovered this if it weren’t for Jeff’s example. He never changed for anyone but himself, and was successful because of this attitude.

Most of all, he taught me to remember that I am the only me, as you are the only you. You cannot be compared to anyone else, not a brother, sister, cousin, mother, father, uncle, or peer. You are a unique and beautiful person, and there is no one out there that can do what you do. Every person has a purpose, you only need to discover what that purpose is.

Because of what Jeff has taught me, I am more accepting of myself as a person. I am not ashamed of who I am and will not change for anyone else, and because of this belief, I was able to find the person I can only describe as my soul mate. My best friend. Because of my confidence in who I am, confidence that Jeff helped to give me, I met possibly the most important person in my life, someone who’s helped me through countless hard times and given me the strength to continue when I thought I never could. Jeff gave me the courage to keep being myself when I was so close to giving up. For anyone who asks, I simply tell them, Jeff Hardy saved my life. And it’s true.

It is this drive, this determination, this belief, and this individuality that makes me admire Jeff Hardy not only as a wrestler and athlete, but as a painter, a sculptor, a poet, a musician, but most importantly, as a human being.

[Y2J]

First of all great read Serj. I think Jeff is decent. I certainly don't resent him as much as others on this forum do. He gets alot of greif for his actions out side of the ring. But to me that's totally irrelevant. If somebody wants to use drugs then it is their decision. It doesn't affect me, it doesn't affect you. Plenty of people do fucked up things when they are sober too. If Jeff wants to be reckless with his lifestyle that's fine. We all pay for our actions sooner or later anyway. Now my problem with Jeff is his sloppy work rate. His matches for the most part put me to sleep, his mic skills have never been the greatest and while I'd take Jeff over his brother Matt any day I still don't think either Hardy are anything to write home about.

[Serujuunin]

First of all great read Serj. I think Jeff is decent. I certainly don't resent him as much as others on this forum do. He gets alot of greif for his actions out side of the ring. But to me that's totally irrelevant. If somebody wants to use drugs then it is their decision. It doesn't affect me, it doesn't affect you. Plenty of people do F'ed up things when they are sober too. If Jeff wants to be reckless with his lifestyle that's fine. We all pay for our actions sooner or later anyway. Now my problem with Jeff is his sloppy work rate. His matches for the most part put me to sleep, his mic skills have never been the greatest and while I'd take Jeff over his brother Matt any day I still don't think either Hardy are anything to write home about.

I'm glad you enjoyed it Y2J. And while his actions outside the ring seem to be irrelevant, it does bother me personally. But that's my problem, I guess. :p

I will agree with you that his mic skills are definitely not the best, and while I don't agree with the direction he's taking in TNA, it is giving him the chance to work on his mic skills... Although he does say some really stupid things sometimes. >.<

Personally, I really enjoyed watching his matches, but again, just me. His matches later on in his WWE career were more impressive to me because not only could he still do most of the high flying things (or convinced himself he could and did them anyway), but he worked more on his technical skills. While they are still nothing really impressive when compared to a lot of talent on either the TNA or WWE roster today, it was impressive for him. (I haven't watched enough of his TNA matches to be convinced that the same is true... At this point I'm convinced he just needs to retire before he hits ROCK bottom.)

[Rabid619]

I liked Jeff when he was in WWE. His ring work was tip top at the end of his run and while you wouldnt call me a Hardy fan, i enjoyed most of his work. I started to dislike him a little bit when he showed up in TNA because i knew he'd be taking away the spotlight that others had been working towards at the time. I started to take a shine to him a little bit again when he faced Kurt at No Surrender. Then the whole thing with his trial really started to bug me because little by little he became sloppy and then he whacks Anderson in the head with a chair. Out the window went my liking for him in the ring. Ever since he's been annoying me because he's shown up to work drunk which i find to be disrespectful and a major hazard. He's supposed to be a role model maybe not on screen but backstage he's supposed to be a top guy and he's showing up drunk. Maybe if he cleans himself up a bit, i'll like him again but i cannot like him with where he's at right now.

Kudos to you Serj for sticking by him even when others like myself can't stand him right now. I hope he cleans up because i enjoyed his work in WWE and that match he had with Kurt at No Surrender was great, even though the finish was kinda dumb because they should have just had a winner but i guess that was setup so Jeff could be in the title match at Bound For Glory.

[Serujuunin]

I liked Jeff when he was in WWE. His ring work was tip top at the end of his run and while you wouldnt call me a Hardy fan, i enjoyed most of his work. I started to dislike him a little bit when he showed up in TNA because i knew he'd be taking away the spotlight that others had been working towards at the time. I started to take a shine to him a little bit again when he faced Kurt at No Surrender. Then the whole thing with his trial really started to bug me because little by little he became sloppy and then he whacks Anderson in the head with a chair. Out the window went my liking for him in the ring. Ever since he's been annoying me because he's shown up to work drunk which i find to be disrespectful and a major hazard. He's supposed to be a role model maybe not on screen but backstage he's supposed to be a top guy and he's showing up drunk. Maybe if he cleans himself up a bit, i'll like him again but i cannot like him with where he's at right now.

Kudos to you Serj for sticking by him even when others like myself can't stand him right now. I hope he cleans up because i enjoyed his work in WWE and that match he had with Kurt at No Surrender was great, even though the finish was kinda dumb because they should have just had a winner but i guess that was setup so Jeff could be in the title match at Bound For Glory.

Thanks Rabid. I have to agree, his work with Kurt was fantastic. I can't believe I forgot about that match when I wrote this, because I was watching it going "o_O He's going head to head with Kurt Angle... WTF?!" (Even though we all know Kurt can do better than that but it was still pretty damned impressive). I really do hope he cleans up, because as much as I will defend him, I cannot condone his actions.

... I need to go find that match now.