You are surrounded by courageous people. The chances are you probably display and exemplify courage more than you can imagine. Some people associate the word with Marines charging a pillbox at Iwo Jima, but of course that's not always the case. Often it is just regular people living their lives, doing the things they're called to do. You may feel that you don't have a choice in life, but if you're not curled up into the fetal position, lying on the floor, unable to move, you're making choices every day.

It takes a certain kind of courage to live in the twenty-first century. This is true for everyone, even for old white guys like me who've been playing the game on easy mode most of our lives. Women have to summon courage more often than men do because let's face it guys, we just don't have to think about things like sexual assault, do we? People of color have to start summoning their courage every time white people (or cops) show up in a given location. A lot of us thought that our brothers and sisters and non-binary friends in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities were going to be able to live without displaying the bravery they'd been using forever, but we were wrong. Current malevolent forces require them to be braver than ever.

What is there to fear, you ask? Well, it's not the things that the government or Fox News would have you believe. It's not the boogeyman who's going to break into your house or a brown person who's going to take away your job. It's not terrorists or anyone who should cause you to start stocking up on guns and ammunition. The people who give us the most to fear are the people around us who have the most privilege. It's the people who would take away your child's health care so they could afford a bigger boat for their beach house. The cruelty of the majority seemingly has no limits. People who have burned through two or three marriages without having a happy one are the same people who would take away the right for committed same-sex couples to enjoy the legal benefits of marriage.

The opportunities for courage are unique to us as individuals. The most frightening thing I ever confronted was sixteen years ago when I spent my first day without alcohol. I had not done that in years and years, and the prospect of going twenty-four hours without the comfort of a drink absolutely terrified me. Of course, I was also terrified by the prospect of dying a miserable, alcoholic death. So I decided to try one more time to get sober, and it finally worked.

Other opportunities for courage include starting or ending a relationship, moving to a new town, leaving one job for another, having children, and making large financial decisions. The fact that millions of people do those things every day shouldn't take away from the reality that they require each of us to move forward into the unknown. Courage is infectious, and the best thing that I can do for myself is to participate in communities whenever possible, whether it's a twelve-step organization or just the kind people I know on the internet. Few things have to be endured alone.

Face whatever you have to face today. All of the terrible things that have ever happened to you in your entire life combined haven't killed you, so it's highly unlikely that anything that happens today will kill you either. Remember that you are not alone and that community is available if you look for it.

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The last two months have been a ride on a very slow moving roller coaster. Living with health challenges has taken an adjustment no one asked if I was ready to make. Thankfully, I'm a quick study and I'm finding out what my current capabilities allow me to do. I'm sleeping like a baby, meaning that I can't make it through the night and I need frequent naps. I'm usually fine as long as I am still. Moving around too much takes my breath away and man oh man, am I slow. One of my grandson uses a wheelchair most of the time but he can get out of it and beat me in a foot race right now.

Forty years of living with bi-polar disorder has taught me a thing or two about mood and energy swings. I accept that they happen and when they do, I don't freak out or whine about it. I had a long, long stretch of productive time from January 2024 through this spring when I managed to write 20 or more blog posts every week, Right now I am only writing one or two a week, but as things stabilize, I hope to pick up the pace a bit. I have managed to stay active on Mastodon, mostly because interacting with the people I have come to know there energizes me.

I’ve developed true compassion for anyone who goes through health challenges alone. I count my blessings every day because Wonder Woman supports me in every way, especially emotionally. She acknowledges my concerns but doesn’t let me wallow in them. She’s kept me incredibly busy by planning multiple trips out of town, mostly to do things with our grandchildren. I’m writing this while we are traveling home from a weekend with three teenage boys spent in SW Virginia, one of the most beautiful places on earth. I might not be able to climb mountains right now, but I still enjoy being surrounded by them.

I really appreciate the many emails and messages I’ve gotten. Don’t ever forget that there are many kind and caring people in the world. The slice of the Internet where I hang out lacks the toxicity that many folks experience when they venture into corporate owned spaces. Give me the small web in every way. I don’t miss billionaire-owned privacy invasion machines.

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