I’ve been thinking a lot about courage lately.
The journey of choosing courage is really the journey of choosing your heart. The heart calls you to your highest purpose and deepest service. It calls you to your greatest joy. And yet though the heart will always guide you towards Truth, it takes courage to listen and follow its whispers into the night.
Because it takes courage to leave what is known for what is not known.
It takes courage to let go of what’s not working without knowing what will.
It takes courage to be still in times of uncertainty and in the space between stories, waiting for the next clue to present itself.
And oh yes, it takes courage to let go what is working to move towards something your heart is telling you will be even better.
It takes courage to change to that direction when you’ve invested so much time and energy and cash in this one.
It takes courage to walk away from accepted definitions of success to live in a way that doesn’t fit inside the made up image most adhere to.
It takes courage to speak what’s on and in your heart when what’s on and in your heart goes against the status quo.
It takes courage to create and launch something – anything – into the world. The outcome is always uncertain. Failure and rejection will happen.
It takes courage to say no, not any more. I can’t. I don’t want to. I…won’t.
It takes courage to leave and it takes courage to stay.
It takes courage to build things and even more to tear them down.
It takes courage to forgive yourself and everyone else.
It takes courage to be who you are in a world that appears to want you to be anything but.
But most of all it takes courage – deep, deep courage – to own up to how powerful you really are. Because once you truly see and admit that power, the world will require much more of you. And that journey may be the hardest you’ve ever undertaken but it will also be the most enlivening. Because to act from who you really are is the thing that keeps the blood rushing through the veins.
As one of my favourites Osho writes:
“My responsibility is toward my heart, not toward anybody else in the world.”
Go forth, my loves, into the journey of your own heart. There is great treasure there.
Love and courage,
Leah
Leave a Reply