cowardly Lion

28 09, 2020

Courage and the Cowardly Lion

By |2020-09-22T11:15:08-05:00September 28th, 2020|Make Me Think Monday, Monday Motivations|1 Comment

Surviving 2020 requires a lot of courage. Every day a new drama comes and always COVID 19 lingers. Doubts and fears battle on the inside. At least, for me.

But then that’s the very definition of courage — confronting a difficult, frightening, painful, or disturbing situation when our first instinctive reaction is to flee.

Examples of courage are portrayed everywhere – in the Bible, in fairy tales, in books, in movies, in the news.

It’s usually depicted as physical bravery but being courageous also encompasses much more than physical strength and endurance. Courage involves mental stamina. That’s 2020 courage.

Melanie Greenberg, Ph.D. identifies six different ways to be courageous.

  1. Feeling Fear Yet Choosing to Act
  2. Following Your Heart
  3. Persevering in the Face of Adversity
  4. Standing Up for What Is Right
  5. Expanding Your Horizons; Letting Go of the Familiar
  6. Facing Suffering with Dignity or Faith

Where do we find courage? The word itself gives us the clue. Courage comes from root cour or coeur, which is French for heart.

The essence of courage lies in our heart.

Judythe MorganThink about the Cowardly Lion in the classic film The Wizard of Oz. Along his journey on the Yellow Brick Road, he learned his courage came from within.

On the really hard days when the chaos of our current world threatens to pull you under, call forth your inner COURAGE like the Cowardly Lion.

We will survive 2020.

 

~~The original version of this blog appeared on View from the Front Porch October 8, 2014

8 10, 2014

What is COURAGE? – One Word Wednesday

By |2014-10-08T06:00:16-05:00October 8th, 2014|one word Wednesday|0 Comments

courage-2Courage — confronting a difficult, frightening, painful, or disturbing situation when our first instinctive reaction is to flee.

The word courage comes from root cour or coeur, which is French for heart. The essence of courage lies in our heart.

We find courage portrayed everywhere – in the Bible, in fairy tales, in books, in movies, in the news.

Courage is depicted as physical bravery, but being courageous also encompasses much more than physical strength and endurance. Courage involves mental stamina and innovation too.

Melanie Greenberg, Ph.D., identifies six different ways we are courageous.

  1. Feeling Fear Yet Choosing to Act
  2. Following Your Heart
  3. Persevering in the Face of Adversity
  4. Standing Up For What Is Right
  5. Expanding Your Horizons; Letting Go of the Familiar
  6. Facing Suffering With Dignity or Faith

cowardly lionThe Cowardly Lion in the classic film The Wizard of Oz learned courage must ultimately come from within.

If you find yourself confronted with a difficult, frightening, painful, or disturbing situation or you feel threatened, weak, vulnerable, intimidated, or terrified, call forth your inner COURAGE.

And remember what Mark Twain says:

“It’s not the size of the dog in the fight; it’s the size of the fight in the dog.”

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