Courage

"Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear - not absence of fear" - Mark Twain
Do you know someone whom you would call courageous? Do yo have someone who inspires you to keep going when you feel like giving up? Someone who shows you what it means to be a courageous person? I have been blessed to meet many in my life. And I carry their courage with me daily and call upon it when needed.

I love the quote that started this article, because to me it is the truest definition of courage I have ever seen. Many of us mistakenly believe that courage means never being afraid of anything. When we think of "the brave" we think of a general leading an army into battle or a firefighter running into a burning building to save someone. Those people are certainly brave, but today I want to talk about a different kind of courage - the kind of courage that can be found on the pediatric ward of a hospital, in a minivan wtih a single mom and her four kids, or at the finish line of marathon five hours after it started.

It takes little courage to run a marathon when you're an elite runner who: a)Knows you'll finish and b) Who only has to run for 3hrs (okay that's still courageous but stay with me here). What is infinitely more admirable to me, are those average Joes out there who line up at the start line of their first marathon not sure if they could survive it. It takes something special inside you to limp your way to the finish line, in great pain, for 5 or 10km just because you refuse to give up! I don't think I'll ever forget watching Ron from NBC's Biggest Loser, crossing the finish line of a marathon THIRTEEN HOURS and SIXTEEN MINUTES after he started!

Go to a pediatric ward in a hospital though and you'll find what I think is probably the most remarkable example of courage I've ever seen. I've been blessed that almost every time I was admitted to a hospital, I was quite sure I would be coming out again. Often though, I'd meet people inside who didn't necessarily have that comfort. And yet, and here is what was truly remarkable, they weren't despondent, sad, or depressed. In fact, compared to the general population, they were quite happy! Now that, is courage. Knowing there's a good chance you won't be alive too long, and deciding to enjoy the ride anyway!

I think if you asked 100 people if they were courageous or not, 70-80 would probably say no and yet I think there are actually many more courageous people in the world than that. It just depends on what you consider to be courageous. Too many of us think, counter to Mark Twain's quote above, that to be courageous means to be without fear. Wrong. To have courage, to me anyway, is to be totally afraid, and do it anyway!

Think about it, does it take any great courage to jump off of a roadside curb? No. Does it take courage to jump off of a chair? For a few maybe, but not for most of us? Does it take courage to jump off a cliff or out of an airplane? Yes. (Some might say it takes a little insanity too, but that's another blog entry:)) So why is it that we label those who in the latter group more courageous than the others? Because we reason that they must be at least somewhat fearful of what they are about to do. Because we're fearful of doing it ourselves. So in fact, you could say that courage requires fear. No fear- no courage.

What's my point? I want you to consider today, what am I afraid of? What barriers, obstacles and limits are in my way because of my fear? What am I unwilling to try because I'm too afraid?
Now, ask yourself the more important question, "Should I do some of those things? What would the result be if I did?"

I'm not advocating reckless behaviour here. That's the reason for the follow up questions. Not everything that we are fearful of ought to be tested. We're afraid of driving our cars 200mph... there's a good reason for that. Fear is, after all, at it's route, a preservation skill. What I'm talking about are the irrational fears and worries that many of us carry around that impede our growth and limit our experience of life.

Today, try to challenge some of your fears. Think honestly about whether they are legitimate (ie: the fear of jumping off of a cliff) or they bear little weight (the fear of meeting someone new because of what they might think about you). If you discover then that either: a) You have nothing to be afraid of at all (often the case) or b)What you are afraid of isn't really that bad, then go ahead and do it anyway! Not only will become more courageous, but your life will open up and you'll be able to experience things that you otherwise wouldn't have.

Have a great weekend! Play safe!
Mark