COURAGE

“Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying ‘I will try again tomorrow.’” Mary Anne Radmacher

I’m sitting in the quiet of my kitchen, there is no one else home except me, and our dog Daisy, but she’s already taking her first nap of the day… she doesn’t care much about my thoughts, or anything else for that matter, she’s just happy just being loved! 🥰

One of my favorite things to do every day is to open my coffee cup cabinet and decide what cup I’ll be drinking my coffee of the morning. For me, it’s an adventure, and it brings me great pleasure. The coffee finished brewing a few minutes ago, it tastes delicious, and the house smells as if angels just visited. The kitchen is clean, and organized, and Alexa is playing Mozart. Classical music will always remind me of my sweet brother JR, who I carry with me in my heart daily. It also brings back memories to the many years our youngest daughter played the violin with several different orchestras. Ahhh, as they say, “the good old times.” These are also good times, just different.

The cup I chose today speaks of courage, and it’s one (if not the one) of my favorite coffee cups in my collection. I love the design, the style, the texture of the material, the colors, the message, everything, and it made me think about courage this morning.

I think courage and I have been long friends!

I can confidently say that I’ve been very courageous my entire life, especially when I’ve been afraid. We don’t only practice courage when we are scared, I think courage is also about determination, and self awareness.

When I look back at the most crucial times in my life when I have been courageous I think it started when I was around 12 years old and our family dynamics at home changed due to the loss of my dad’s business, and his sudden, and abrupt way of looking at life, not a positive one. I needed courage to continue to look at life in a beautiful way, and not let my surroundings affect my young heart too much. Thank God for my mother that taught me how to be courageous from day one.

Another time in my life when courage walked side by side with me was when I got married and I moved a couple thousand of miles away from my family, and friends to a brand new world of cultures, and experiences. I prayed a lot those days, and courage, and determination continued to make this journey possible. Of course love, because otherwise, this story would not have been possible without it.

As I think about all these moments in my life, moments of courage, the one that has had the biggest impact in my life is when my youngest brother died suddenly a couple years ago. One day, I’ll write about that journey, everything in due time, but for now, I can say that I had to show up for myself, time and time again in order to survive the horrific reality I was faced with. Courage was my daily practice… and so much more.

But courage is not always a big, huge act of battle, or accomplishment, I’ve also needed, and need courage when people’s words, and actions hurt me, or I’ve been treated unjustly. I need courage when my invisible chronic pain (well, this one is big), wants to stop me from doing the ordinary, every day things in life, and I have to push myself because on most days, I have no other choice. I need courage when I witness injustices, or behaviors that do not align with my morals, or ideals, and have to act on it…

I need courage to care for myself, to nurture myself, and to put myself first so I can be there for others.

And I could go on and on, as so can you. ❤️

Courage doesn’t have to be dramatic. Courage is taking action in spite of fear, doubt, tiredness, etc.

I am proud of the many times I’ve been courageous, it has expanded my horizons, and has made me appreciate life, and the ordinary, and extraordinary gifts in my life in a much deeper way.

I invite you to meditate on the times you have shown up for yourself, and courage has played a big part in doing that. We all have a story. 🌿