Courage

Courage is such an easy word to understand theoretically, but near impossible to grasp unless confronted with individuals who exemplify its attributes.

Having now met a few individuals who lived during the Civil Rights movement…listening to the emotion in their voices as they recall a time now forgotten by our nation…seeing videos of what they were up against…I am humbled by their courage. Hindsight truly is 20/20. Knowing the ending allows us (who didn’t experience the movement) to passively accept the logical progression of the movement. The history books are clean in that sense. As we read about the Montgomery bus boycotts or the many marches and campaigns, we don’t have to read with anxiety because we have the privilege of knowing the “ending.”

What the history books fail to capture are the blank pages in front of Rosa Parks, Dr. King, and the many individuals who finally refused to accept anything less than equality. Yes, there was the hope that their words and actions would change the landscape, but there were no guarantees. Take away one march, one speech, one act and we might be on a very different journey this week. It takes something special for someone to look up at the mountaintop and not know if they will ever reach it…but begin climbing nevertheless.

That is courage.

What is our generation’s mountain…and will we have the courage to begin the climb?

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