Courage Runs Deep

It was simply gorgeous weather as the warm Southerly breezes lapped the Chesapeake Bay on the shores of the Naval Academy grounds. My sister took me there sharing the secret gathering place near the historic bay town of Annapolis with its quaint shops peppered with tourists and navy officers in their dress whites. We passed the Navy lacrosse team playing Rutgers in a close spring game and watched a sailing competition of white sailed ships in the bay. It was a glorious day experiencing the change in season for the first time in its warmth and glory.

I held onto my wig, a new accessory I was wearing for the first time; in light of my alopecia back again after a ten year hiatus. I had been wearing my Boston Marathon hat with an itsy bitsy pony tail out the back just to prove I had hair still but my family though I should be ‘brave” and wear the wig out in public. With my handsome husband and two equally attractive sons, my sister and niece with the fullest heads of hair you can imagine and my brother-in-law with some baldness at my side, I knew I could “fake it until I made it” in town and eventually at a 5 star restaurant for my niece’s confirmation dinner. I wanted to look as normal as I could for them, not for me.

The revered Naval Academy had beautiful stone monuments along our bayside walk with a couple itched with slogans that spoke to this personal moment. One read, “Courage Runs Deep” and the other one just said “Courage.” It was if the heavens above knew I needed to be reminded I was tackling my own level of courage in the day. I was also quickly humbled in the moment remembering the importance of personal courage and dedication to be in the Armed Forces compared to my illness.

I know a multitude of women who display courage in everyday life. Some of them are battling life threatening diseases, running businesses after a loved one dies, starting a new enterprise hoping it produces much needed money, selling it to move on with a new career adventure or running for public office to change the world. I’m not sure any woman could get up and face the day without some level of courage. Sometimes we only need enough courage to get out of bed and other times we need a lifetime of courage to propel us forward to face a situation. We are lucky courage can ebb and flow, when we need it, like the bay waves in the Annapolis.

I hope if you are reading this blog post today and an abundant amount of courage is needed to face a business or personal issue, you unearth it and remember that just like the Naval Academy monuments stated “Courage Runs Deep” and you will survive anything big or small if you believe in the endless well of bravery that lies in your soul. It is there waiting for you to gather a bucket of and bring it to the surface.