Now, lets talk about Bravery.

 

I will not waste your time talking about physical bravery – like the movies. Here, I want to talk about psychological bravery. It is the decision to change. Not the actual change, but the decision to do so.

 

Let me tell you about Samantha.

 

Samantha was just a little girl – about 7 or so – when her parents divorced. That divorce led to a downhill experience for her. Abuse. Neglect. More abuse. Seeing violent acts and being a victim of rape. She was truly trying to live a life of love and joy. She was passionate about helping others. She became a nurse, got married, had two lovely children. But life still wasn’t unfolding the way she knew it could. Her marriage was crumbling and she was on the verge of losing her job. Instead of giving in to the divorce and unemployment and the dread of continuing to live in hgh first week the darkness of depression, she called me. She came into my office and before I could even ask her name, she started sobbing. I don’t think either of us said more than a couple of words in that first session.

 

That was her point of bravery. She was honest with herself about needing help, so she mustered up the bravery to ask for help. I will say that she is doing wonderful now – happily married, enjoying her job, and being one of the best loved nurses in her area.

 

This is one extreme example of psychological bravery. Not everyone will have this kind of decision point. Most of us will have a decision point like the one I made several years ago when I started to learn what it meant to live authentically. A simple decision to make things different.

 

“Sometimes the biggest act of courage is a small one.” Lauren Raffo