The Brave Ones

Good morning Lovelies,

I received a message from one of you in the middle of the night... stating you hoped one day you could be "brave enough".... to comment and share your own story.... and until then you would privately message me... It wasn't the first message like this....

This got me thinking...

If you and I were all in a room together, and if I asked you to share 3 words that describe you... I can almost guarantee 100% of you would not use the word "brave".

We would hear words like...

artistic

kind

giving

stubborn

dreamer

loving

tired

hopeful

workoholic

fearful

determined

The list goes on and on.... and likely... "BRAVE" wouldn't have a place on the list.

This is SO SAD to me for so many reasons.

It seems like for us.... BRAVERY requires some grand statement.

The brave are those who rescue people from burning buildings.

The brave are those who jump out of airplanes.

The brave are those who choose a path never walked before.

The brave are those who risk their lives for causes greater than themselves.

The brave are the martyrs.

The brave are those who win...

For most of us.... we look in the mirror and we don't see someone we would call brave. We see someone who struck out.... someone who lived afraid. We see someone who never stepped out on the ledge...someone who stayed in one place....We someone ordinary... living an uneventful life.

It's amazing how the mirror can lie. It's even more shocking that we believe it.

The truth is.... Bravery surrounds us.

The one choosing to stop chemo treatments.... She's a brave one.

The one deciding to take another round of radiation.... She is just as brave.

The one who chooses to stay... that takes bravery when her heart is telling her to run.

The one raising children.... she is SO freakin brave.

The one who decides to go back to college at 40.... that is brave.

The one who attends her first AA meeting... she is a brave one.

The one who recognizes her addiction and faces it... she is brave.

The one who buries her insecurities and chooses self love... she is brave.

The one who accepts an apology from an enemy... she just put her heart out on the line... THAT is brave.

The one who is the first to say "I'm Sorry." She admitted a mistake. Again.... Bravery at it's finest.

The one who cares for her father with Alzheimers...She is brave.

The one who chooses kindness over wrath... She is brave.

The one who chooses forgiveness over revenge... also brave.

The one who picked up and moved across the country to chase a dream... she is brave.

The one who stood up for change.... she is brave.

The one who second guessed religious tyranny... very brave.

The one who quit her job for an out of the box idea... again... so brave.

The one who decided to cut ties with an abuser.... she is brave.

The one who left an alcoholic husband in the middle of the night.... she is the brave one.

The one who decided to believe in love... after having her heart broken... she is brave.

The one who decided to bury her anger and live in peace.... she is also brave.

The one who raised a baby when she was just a baby herself... she is brave.

The single mama working two jobs to care for her babies... she is brave.

The one who chose adoption when she recognized she wasn't able to parent.... so very brave.

The one who decided to go to college... she is brave.

The one who decided to dropout of school to chase the unconventional... also so freakin brave.

The one who backpacked across Europe... brave.

The one who decided to start her own business... she is brave.

The one who decided to walk away from the status quo... how brave they are.

The one who decided to use her voice... she is brave.

The one who decided to start the hard conversation... She is brave.

The one who extended the hand of reconciliation... that's a brave one.

The one who decided to stay in her marriage despite the failures... she was brave.

The one who decided to get a divorce... she was also brave.

The one who risked failure and decided to try.... she is brave.

The one who said YES... she is brave.

The one who said NO... equally as brave.

The one who stayed in the ring.... BRAVE.

The one willing to look in the mirror and call herself out... so brave.

The one willing to face her demons... she is a brave one.

The one willing to live in faith... she is also brave.

The one who steps into therapy and admits she's broken... very brave.

The one who decides to start over... she is brave.

The one who decides to no longer live in shame... she's another brave one.

The one who walks away from the gossip clique.... again... brave.

The one who refuses to participate in competition and drama... she is so so brave.

The one who screams her truth from the mountaintops.... She is brave.

The one who wishes blessings on those who persecute her... she is brave.

The one who stays in the room with the misfits.... she is brave.

The tolerant one... the loving one... she is also so brave.

The one who fights that jealous spirit and wishes for others to win... she is brave.

The one who refuses to give up on herself... she is brave.

The one who refuses to give up on others... just as brave.

The one who gets up every single day and decides to try again...

She is brave.

Now.... as you read through that list.... I am sure you found yourself there... YOU are there among the brave ones. So next time you look in the mirror and feel afraid and incapable of taking the next step... STOP and remember... YOU are able... YOU are the image of bravery... every day that you wake up and decide to crawl out of that bed... is a day you decide to live BRAVE.

Fear is overrated. Fear is an excuse. Fear is a liar. Fear has stolen too much territory from you...It's time to take it back.

It's time to recognize the truth... You do NOT live in fear... You live freakin BRAVE.... every single day.

And I'm so very proud of you.

Now go and share this with someone you consider brave... so they can learn to call themselves brave too :)

XOXO.