Acts of Courage

Arjun’s note: Welcome to Edition 20. I write about Acts of Courage. Please share the newsletter (linked here) with your core Whatsapp group chat and ask them to subscribe.

Fight. Desist. Struggle. Resist. Every act is an awakening. Even holding back is enlightening. In a vacuum, an empty classroom, these words lack meaning. These action verbs sit on a high shelf till you are shaken awake. From afar, these are wanton acts of the unruly. Up close, these moments make you question your life.

Running towards conflict requires courage. Refraining from fisticuffs requires courage. Living, resisting, persisting, it takes gumption. Sitting in the quiet at home teaches you nothing. Mental warfare exhausts but teaches naught. You can plumb the depths of your despair and still leave empty handed. Discovering strength is an ordeal.

You decide if the ordeal involves suffering. You uncover your true mettle when challenged. You dig deep to carve out a path when all roads close. Secure a future when every option is taken off the table. Life clarifies itself when you run out of choices. Your strength is revealed when you have none. The days count when you start looking forward to them.

No one should have bad days. Your mornings should be sunny, evenings breezy and nights cool. The sky bedazzled with luminescent stars and not angry flashes. Your life should have the calmness of a deep blue ocean and irregular waves of your making. In the stillness of this life, you will realize the strength it takes to keep everything from crumbling.

Our existence is a raindrop speeding on a car window. From top to bottom it goes in theory. In reality, it gets stuck midway or is slammed sideways by the vicissitudes of life. Everything can change in an instant if we forget to resist. The world is fragile and we are flimsy. We need to be strong.

You have to run the gauntlet at every age. The challenges will vary and you will grow weary. It will get harder before it gets easier. And it only gets easier when you convince yourself of your remarkable strength. You delude yourself about your reserves of courage. You lie till you believe yourself.

This courage can propel life in a different direction. The saving grace is that it architects a wilful life and not an unintentional one. You decide how you want to live and lead. You bore the blows, withstood the rage and crafted a reality unrelatable for everyone but yourself. No returns possible.

Your acts of courage teased out the life you now lead. You faced situations and stared down people to seed this life. You attacked the king of the jungle when it was easier to lie in the shade. You became the warrior when you were destined to be the craftsman. Courage changes lives in ways you cannot predict. If you dare, you can go all the way without fear.