Courage isn't something you're born with. Motivation, determination, prayer and as Mom-Mom Rose would say, a good dose of moxie is the spirit that forges courage. Courage runs parallel with fear. Being courageous is feeling the fear and doing it anyway. I've told my three lovelies this since they could speak.
Number two discovered that feeling the fear can be empowering and dangerous if not done thoughtfully.
Number two enjoyed a sleep-over with a few friends and received a distressing call from a neighbor at about three a.m. when the friends and the family were sound asleep. Number two's friend was in a dire situation. Being the child number two is, number two trudged through a four-foot snowstorm in the blackness of night walking a mile through our development to reach out to our neighbor. My husband and I didn't discover this nugget of information until early next morning when my neighbor arrived to thank number two for saving their child's life. Now, this is where as a parent you're torn between wanting to throttle your child or call the media. As proud as I was of number two's insanely heroic effort, the lecture ensued of the importance of reaching out for help when things were overwhelming and remembering never to endanger yourself. Once the reminder of making smart choices ended, number two simply said, "But he wasn't making smart choices, and if I weren't making smart choices, I'd want someone to help me. I was scared, but I knew in my heart I was making the choice to do the right thing. There wasn't time to let my fear control my decision, and it all worked out in the end." Does it get any more courageous than that? From the mouths of babes.
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