Courage: the ability to confront fear in the face of danger, uncertainty or intimidation.
Have you ever experienced that rapid, pounding heart that goes along with that twisting knot in your stomach at the thought of doing or saying something? Those risky situations where I have something to lose, like a relationship that I valued, are the quickest to cause that reaction in me. Sometimes, I do lose - an argument, a friend, even a family.
So, is that called courage... when I'm churning so much inside?
I've often wondered if what some have called courage in me is not just conforming to what is most comfortable for me - maybe it's just easier to stay the course rather than step out and do the harder thing - the right thing. Then, again, when I speak those words or do what I'm dreading to do, in spite of that feeling, I think it is courage.
Wait a minute... are we talking about courage or just relational things? Isn't courage the word we use for firefighters, soldiers, and policemen? Oh, yes, those men and women show great bravery, but there are other aspects of life that take a fortitude, too - things that can't be seen by the casual observer.
I see courage when someone, who I know has been beaten down verbally, speaks out in defense of another. Or maybe one who has lived life by very strict standards steps out of their comfort zone and reshapes their thinking - not by compromising those values, but realizing that more ideas fit into those parameters. Then, it might be reaching out to help someone who is difficult to be with, looking past the rough exterior, even the dark inside, and showing kindness.
Continuing to show love and kindness, making yourself vulnerable in the face of rejection and deep, emotional loss is taking courage to yet another level - that's a tough one in my experience. Very few see it - just those with innate intuition and the ones closest to that person.
This quote paints a picture of how I define courage:
"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; because there is not effort without error and shortcomings; but who does actually strive to do the deed; who knows the great enthusiasm, the great devotion, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and who at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly."
~ Theodore Roosevelt
