THE THRUTH ABOUT COURAGE

                               THE THRUTH ABOUT COURAGE

Nelson Mandela once said ‘‘I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear’’. Often times, people think that being courageous enough to speak up about issues, whether personal, political or social means that the individual involved had no fear or must have been a modern day David. Whatever the case may be, speaking up about issues is NOT usually an easy task. The mere sound of your voice as you speak, placing one word right after the other while hoping that your intentions are perfectly conveyed. The movement of your fingers as you give life to your thoughts with a pen and a paper or the sheer expression on your face as you take a stand, a solid stand. Whichever way you decide to speak up, whichever way you decide to break the chains and shackles of a terrorizing silence...One thing is sure, it demands a GREAT DEAL OF COURAGE.

Courage to say or do that which your mind has contemplated on in so long a time and your mouth craved to scream.

Courage to break out of a mental, psychological, emotional or physical prison.

 Courage to fight that which has silently been holding you back, stretching you to unimaginable lengths; to the BREAKING POINT.

And while there are no guarantees that the outcome of this courage will come with an Oscar or a lifetime of rewards, most times the results are more negative than they are positive, YOU DON'T STOP.

 Most times, the consequences of speaking up are quite gruesome, tiring and all shades of complicated but when you breathe that AIR...the very first air that comes right after voicing out those caged thoughts of yours.  When you breathe in the fresh, cool air of relief...only then would you realize just how long you've been locked up, just how long you've been underground. Only then would you realize just how suffocating silence could be. And in that moment of your undecided fate, you would know for sure that you had just made the RIGHT DECISION and you are finally FREE. NEVER LOSE YOUR VOICE, SPEAK AND LIVE!

This is for anyone who thinks the absence of fear is courage. This for anyone who feels that being afraid is abnormal. You are wrong! It is totally normal to be scared, without fear, there won’t be courage. What you must do is learn not to dwell in your fears.

Do one thing a day that scares you. Don’t wallow in silence. Speak, live and act yourself out of your fears. BE BRAVE!