The same traits that are seen in the epic heroes of poems, movies, and literature can also be seen in the modern world today. People all over the world go to extreme measures to stand up for what is right and to protect the people that they love. Immaculee Ilibagiza, who survived the Rwandan genocide, is a prime example of an epic hero in our world today. She lost everything in her life that was important to her and came out of the whole situation stronger than before. Immaculee Ilibagiza displays traits of a hero through her loyalty to her faith and family, her strength to not lose her will to live during the Rwandan genocide, and her wisdom in sharing her story and inspiring others. 

The first way that Immaculee Ilibagiza shows traits of a modern hero is through her loyalty to her faith and family. Throughout her whole life, Ilibagiza always had a strong relationship with God and with her family. They were a very tight-knit family that stressed the importance of praying and worshipping together. She had three brothers who she loved very much. They were Damascene, the oldest, Aimable, and John. For most of her life, she was unaware of the racially based split between the people of Rwanda. In Rwanda, there was two tribes of people: the dark skinned Hutus and the lighter skinned Tutsis. She was a Tutsi, but had many Hutu friends and did not typically see much strife between the two groups. When she was in college, the struggle between the two groups became prominent and fighting broke out in some areas of Rwanda, but Immaculee was still mostly unaffected. Eventually, the genocide made it to her town and her survival hinged on the fact that her pastor showed her and seven other women kindness during the genocide and hid them in his bathroom. The genocide was a trying time for Immaculee. There was little to no food, the women were cramped in a very small bathroom, and she was very angry at the Hutus for acting so violently towards her people. Through all of the struggle that was happening around Immaculee, she never abandoned her faith in God. She constantly prayed for the safety of her and those around her even though God had not been showing her any mercy. She stayed loyal to her faith even in the worst of situations. A regular person would have denounced their faith in that time, but she knew God would get her through. She also stayed loyal to helping her family even though she knew that there was a good chance they had been killed. As soon as she was able to leave the bathroom, she began searching for her family. She found out that two of her brothers had been killed along with her parents. Not even the immense grief she felt about losing most of her family led her to lose her loyalty to her faith, in fact, the loss of her family strengthened her faith in God.

The next way that Immaculee Ilibagiza showed traits of an epic hero was through her strength in the trying times of the genocide. Being locked a small bathroom with seven other women for months could make a person lose not only their strength, but their will to live. Immaculee used her isolation and confinement to strengthen her will and her faith. Towards the end of the genocide, the Hutus suspected that Immaculee was near the pastor’s house and began hunting her directly and calling her name. They would say obscene things towards her and her family and through all of it she had doubts, but she her strength never faltered. Through constant prayer and hope, she made it through and used her strength to help others after she was rescued by French soldiers. The French soldiers took Immaculee to a camp where she helped the people and children there find their strength and will to live after losing everything important to them. Immaculee never losing her will to live during the genocide and helping people after emulates traits of an epic hero.

The final way that Immaculee Ilibagiza displays traits of a hero is through the wisdom she has shared with the whole world after what she went through. After Immaculee had gotten a job, moved to America, and was fluent in English, she decided it was time to share her story with the world in hopes that they would take an important message of faith and perseverance from her own experiences. Immaculee began to give talks all around the United States describing her life and how she had persevered with her faith intact after all that had happened. Eventually, she decided to chronicle her life and experience in a book titled “Left to tell.” In the book, she shares her immense wisdom and has left the story of the Rwandan genocide for the whole world to see. Her wisdom throughout all she has experienced emulates the traits of a hero in our world today.

In conclusion, Immaculee Ilibagiza's life is that of a legendary hero. Through struggle, pain, and death all around her she prevailed stronger, smarter, and headstrong in her faith. She proved that no matter how bad things get, God always has a plan for a person’s life and knows what He is doing. The whole world looks up to Immaculee Ilibagiza and should try to mirror her behavior because, above everything else that she is, she is first a hero.