Courage! What does it really take?

While watching a National Geographic program recently about a young fourteen year old girl, Amita, it raised some questions about how we deal with life’s challenges.   Every one to two years another sibling arrives on their doorstep because her mum has had another unwanted baby. There is barely enough food to feed the family. Another child adds to the burden and struggle to survive. Amita does most of the work taking care of their home, the cooking, her grandmother and all eight children, ranging from a baby to 11 years old.

Amita told the reporter, through an interpreter, “It’s hard. I’m always tired. But what choice do I have?” She continued that she doesn’t have time to play.

Can You imagine what this would be like?

Even though there appeared to be sadness about her, I also appreciated Amita’s inner strength and courage to keep going.

As Robert Frost once said “The best way out is always through.”

The Encarta Dictionary says courage is “The ability to be brave. The ability to do something that you know is right or good, even though it is dangerous, frightening, or very difficult”

For many people, the fear of  public speaking is something that is feared more than death. It takes courage, determination and inner-resilience to face those fears head on and move through any barriers holding you back. However, once you do, you move from fearful to fabulous and become the natural authentic speaker that perhaps you only dreamed about.

• Do You sometimes feel afraid about taking the next step?
• Do You feel uncertain, at times, about what the next step is?
• Do You embrace the next step anyway even if You feel unsure?
• And when You do take the next step, how does that feel? Do You feel alive and happy that You did it anyway?

“Trust the still, small voice that says, this might work and I’ll try it.”  Diane Mariechild

Here’s to embracing Your courage, speaking from Your heart and sharing Your message!