Most of the time we think courage is a big emotion we muster up in times of need, when the clouds descend and life collapses around us with loud booming noises.
But often, the opposite is true. Sometimes it is the quietest of moments, when we can barely hear our own heart speaking, that require the most courage.
We are taught that courage is having the heart of a lion – but a lion doesn’t always roar. Watch carefully; each move a lion makes is calculated and graceful. In fact, a lion is still for a good portion of time – almost as if in deep contemplation and reflection – choosing to roar when time and circumstance demand it.
As human beings, we are often afforded moments of deep reflection to look inside our own hearts. It is in these moments that we are gifted a new, clearer lens through which we can see ourselves. However, once we peer through that lens, there is no turning back – only marching forward with courage as our guide.
In the following excerpt from Terry’s Sidford’s, One Hundred Hearts, we find Martina at a crossroads in her life, with life trying to turn pages Martina isn’t ready for.
“She often felt lonely, like she had lost herself somewhere along the way and was left without a compass. She loved her kids madly, but knew they could not always be the center of her life. They would grow up and move away. Max and she had a stable, pleasant relationship, although somewhere between breast-feeding and control-top panties, Martina’s fire for her husband had begun sputtering. Max seemed to be fulfilled with his career in banking and never gave any indication that he would ever want anything more than what they had. He was content, probably even happy. Max was a good guy; he wasn’t the problem.
The problem was the cloud front that moved into Martina’s soul during those long, quiet afternoons she spent planted on the couch. This was something fundamental, something bone-deep. It scared her to listen to the conversation inside her head; what are you doing with your life? Whatever happened to the young woman who was going to travel Europe, drink wine, and experience men? You’ve become the one thing you never thought you would – average, typical, unseen and unheard…”
Read more of Martina’s story and others that honor and celebrate the courage of women around the world. Buy One Hundred Hearts>>
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