4-year-old cancer survivor dresses as herself for 'Superhero Day'

This story first appeared on Babble and is reprinted with permission.

Josie Kimberlin is one 4-year-old who knows what real superheroes are made of.

They aren't composed of muscles made of steel, or men flying around in the sky, or even women with impossibly tight leather suits. Instead, real superheroes are made of courage, bravery, and kindness. All of which this one little girl has displayed before she even entered kindergarten.

And the best part is -- she completely knows her own strength.

Diagnosed in 2013 with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, Josie went into remission nine months after her cancer was discovered. So the night before "Superhero Day" at school, Josie's mother, Alyssa Butler, encouraged her daughter to dress up as herself instead of a classic superhero. Butler told The Huffington Post:

Butler explained to Babble that she told Josie that she was her hero and how brave she was.

According to her Facebook page, Josie's Journey, strength has been a common theme in the family's experience with cancer.

Only 2 years old when she was diagnosed, Butler called Josie her "go getter" and notes that the experience taught her how to fight to not to lose her precious daughter. "My daughter has shown me how strong I really am, my weaknesses, and how fast a love of life can be taken," she said on her Facebook page.

Image Source: Alyssa Michelle Butler

So what is Superhero Josie's (or just Superhero "J" for short) super power? Well, as evidenced by her awesome cape, featuring princess castles and lightning and her even more awesome smile, her powers lie in destroying cancer one day at a time. "For cancer patients, it's different and more challenging through every obstacle of life," Butler said. But Josie is "glowing like a fire fly in the night sky. It's amazing."

Butler said while she didn't actually get to see Josie's classmates' reactions to her superhero cape, she has been blown away by the support from her friends and classmates.

The strength of children like Josie and their families is so inspiring to see, and in my book, she's exactly the type of superhero that this world needs.

Plus, let's face it -- her cape is way cooler than Batman's.

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