Personal Courage – Part Seven
The following is part seven of an eight-part series based on the U.S. Army Values: Loyalty, Duty, Respect, Selfless Service, Honor, Integrity, and Personal Courage. The reader should discover that these tenets carry over to all facets of life and are not limited to military service.
Courage. Perhaps John Wayne described it best in this quote: “Courage is being scared to death and saddling up anyway.” Courage was also the one thing that the Cowardly Lion wanted more than anything in The Wizard of Oz, but outside of Hollywood we often have to face our fears and do what needs to be done. Especially if it is difficult or costly.
Personal Courage is not the absence of fear; rather, it is the ability to put fear aside and do what is necessary. It is the one value that provides a person with the stamina and drive to adhere to their set of values in the worst of times and against the greatest adversity. We also see personal courage when taking the initiative to face fear, danger, and adversity.
Personal Courage in the physical form is visible, it’s palpable, and oftentimes it’s downright dangerous. Consider the firefighter running into a burning building. With all the training and with all the protective gear he or she would be wearing they still have to fight the natural sense self-preservation in order to get the job done. An average person would almost never be in a situation like this, but nearly everyone in this readership has faced their fear of injury and ridden a bike for the first time. Think back on that. It took a lot of courage to get up and try it again until you got it right, didn’t it? Or how about that time you asked someone out for the first time? Not fun, right? If you survived either of these scenarios, you have demonstrated personal courage.
Personal courage also entails a moral aspect. Doing what’s right even when others are far off course is one example. Sometimes you might have to speak up for someone or something, which is extraordinarily difficult for some people. Public speaking in general causes great fear and trepidation and it’s almost always easier to just stay quiet and let things be, but that’s how moral values start to erode – little by little – until before you know it you’ve lost sight of them altogether. These are battles that we have to win, even if it costs us some of our pride.
Stepping out of one’s comfort zone and taking a risk, be it physical or moral takes courage, but the result is a new sense of confidence. Confidence to walk a little bit taller, to speak a little bit bolder, and to stand firm when challenges arise. These are things that were once taught in the home, but now teachers, administrators, and counselors often fill this role. The youth today are often without firm foundations of how they are to act, walk, and talk in society and everything is permissible. The moral compass that guides most of us adults is foreign to them. We have to do a better job of sowing the seeds of nurture and ethics for this generation. They need to have confidence that their words will not come back on them and cause them harm if they are following their moral values - the same moral values that we have taught them. Develop the personal courage to teach your children well and feed them on your dreams. You’ll be glad you did.
The column represents the thoughts and opinions of Alan Shoalmire. Opinion columns are NOT the opinion of the Navasota Examiner.
Alan Shoalmire is a resident in Grimes County and the owner of Grill Sergeant Hotdogs and submits a column to the Navasota Examiner every other week.