The Ghost of the Christmas present is referring to the approximately 1800 Christmases that have come and gone since the birth of Christ, culminating up to the point where the story is told.
The qualitys of a hero can be helping others or being kind hearted. You may or nay not believe that heros are all around us! No, im not talking about super heros such as superman or spiderman. Regular everyday people can be heros aswell. Firefighters, farmers, teachers, or even parents. All those people ive listed (and much more) can be heros one way or the next.
( I gave you a head start, you can name more people or add more traits of a hero. Then go in detail how those people you named are heros. For example, farmers work hard everyday to bring food in stores for us to eat etc. It sounds a little cheesy so sorry about that haha)
As Holden shares his experiences, it becomes evident that he is talking from a mental facility where he is being psychoanalyzed. He is mentally insane, or at least considered so. This can be seen by his frequent use of the word 'madman" <span>when he criticizes himself: "I was smoking like a madman"</span>