Is Courage Lost?

It's amazing how sometimes, random things, like books, television shows or sermons, coincide with things you're struggling with or dealing with. In this case, I'm watching "Little House on the Prairie" (while working) and Charles Ingalls has helped Indians receive safe passage, to the horror of many other white men in town.

When one of these men confronts him about it, saying, "You would shoot your own people?" Charles responds, "You're not my people. You're cowards."


Stand up for yourself. Seriously, if you have something to say to someone, by all means: say it. But don't be surprised when people are mad by it. When you upset people. But for goodness sakes - fight your own battles. Don't hide behind someone else and ceremoniously wash your hands. If you want something to change, change it.

Who hasn't heard, "If you want something done right, you have to do it yourself?"

It's amazing how often people will let others fight their battles for them. And then, they're shocked when the ground is pulled from beneath their feet because others know who was behind it, and it ticks them off that they were deceitful. It's amazing how often when you let others do it for you, or force them to do it for you, it collapses your plan. It's amazing how often things don't work out the way they expect.

Take responsibility for your actions. And don't lie about them. Whatever happened to courage - or for that matter, common sense?

I suppose they've washed away with all the rest of our values. Quelle surprise.

Courage And Words

There are different kinds of brave, and different kinds of courage. There's the courage to get up in front of people, and to talk, or to sing or to share. There's the courage to get things done. There's the courage to ask people for things, like money. There's the courage to tell people the way things are - or should be. There's the courage to tell a friend that he/she is stupid.

The only way I'll get up in front of people and sing - even Karaoke - is if I'm drunk, I'm pretty sure. I don't know this from experience, it's just a hunch. It's something I would want to do - something I would love to do, really, I just can't do it. That's why I think that if I hadn't any inhibitions I could do it.

Mike doesn't get that. For him, singing in front of people is no problem. I was trying to explain to him why I can't, and he said, "Just watch me, you just get up and do it. It doesn't take courage." His best friend, Adam, understood better, and while we were both listening to Mike sing, said, "He'll never understand that, Robin. He just won't." So true.

I don't have the type of courage to call out a friend, either. I can gripe and complain all I want, but when it actually comes down to it, I won't do anything. I won't try to change it. I'll think about it for sure, but thinking is different than doing.

People talk talk talk talk talk about how things should be different, about how they should be better. But I've noticed something about people. Oftentimes, the ones doing all the talking, the ones who are so passionate about getting others motivated, don't do anything themselves - and oftentimes, they never will.

I think that's a different kind of brave. I think that having the courage to realize something is wrong and working to change that is one of the best kinds of brave, one of the best types of courage. Especially when that work goes unspoken.