"It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are" said E E Cummings
What does Courage really mean? Very broadly, it involves making a decision or taking an action where a risk is involved—something actual or imagined to fear. Courage is the necessary force ensuring growth rather than retreat.
Viktor Frankl in his book Man's Search for Meaning, while taking us with him on the journey of his struggles to adapt to life in a World War II concentration camp; he writes : “You cannot control what happens to you in life, but you can always control what you will feel and do about what happens to you." And he also says "Between the stimulus and the response, there is space. And in that space lies your power and your freedom"
Act, once you are at peace with your choice in that space. That would be an act of courage much like the music is made up of the silence between the played notes.
It doesn't have to be this grandiose thing reserved for those without fear and great risk takers. Start small and make little bets on ways to quell the fear that's holding you back from living your best version.
It's frightening to come up against things you're afraid of. Just remember that courage is the catalyst that transforms those dreams into your actual reality: “I don’t believe it’s possible to live a life free from fear, but courage is not the absence of fear; it’s the willingness to act in the presence of fear.” -David Du Chemin
It takes courage to move countries, speak/perform in front of the crowd, have children, fall in love, change jobs, find new hobbies, it takes courage to suck at something totally new and fail and then again and finally evolve.
It takes courage to speak up. Not because the others would listen or you are going to change them, but if you don't they would have changed you. Whilst sometimes silence is your strength. There are times, you have to speak up.
Sometimes even waking up and going about your day, one step at a time, takes Courage.
You owe to the child, the teenager, the youth in you and to all the future you(s) and most importantly to the one in the mirror, now. All it takes is a bit of courage.
Be Your Own Superpower!
Copyright © Nee