What is true courage?

This week, I’m thinking about courage. Courage in the face of disaster. Courage in the face of uncertainty. Courage in the face of change. Courage in the face of loss.

I have faced a number of things that I hope others never have to face. I know other people face tough, even impossible, things too. It changes you. It can break you. But ultimately, mostly, we are still here. Still moving forward, if sometimes slowly…

My belief is that few understand true bravery until they have lost everything and have had to rebuild from scratch. It takes true grit. It takes getting out of bed every morning, no matter what. Courage now rarely relates to a battlefield, it’s a hidden strength and is often only discernible by the individual involved and their immediate family.

When I have been knocked for six by something I could not have predicted, I may have been less than receptive. I may not have been able to either listen or share in a balanced way. At the time, it would have been impossible to voice my state of mind or even what I wanted for lunch! Then social niceties become less important. Real is important. Love and kindness are important. Friendship is important.

A friend said recently, that when faced with the decision whether to support their community or invest in their own needs, their choice was automatic. Community. So automatic it did not feel like a choice, so deeply rooted in their subconscious values. I admire their belief to do what they felt right, not easy, despite personal cost and the risk of being misunderstood. That’s courage.

Whatever you are facing, you can tap into the courage to face it. It can be hard and require a level of determination you did not know you possessed… but we all have a basic drive to survive, live and thrive.

I have faith in me, and in you, that what has gone before prepares us for what comes next. I hope so, anyhow 😉. There’s always prayer (to whoever works for you) – at the very least it focuses the mind! And if you ever lose everything in a short space of time, I will sit beside you in spirit if not in person.

To lighten the mood, here’s a picture of a praying squirrel:

And a pretty relevant quote from Charles Dickens (A Tale Of Two Cities), my second favourite book:

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair.”

An eventful year! Ah well, at least I’ve lost weight 😂🤣. Bring on the good times.

Lots of love,

Ruth x

The header image is by Karim Manjra on Unsplash