God grant me the courage to change the things that I can….
Richard Cohen, in his book Strong in the Broken Places, writes: “Our friends and loved ones …. provide an infrastructure of love and support. But courage must be drawn from within.”
There are many resources today for persons with a chronic illness and addiction in form of books, 
healthcare professionals, alternative healers, the world wide web, and your best friend’s cousin’s grandma who knew someone who is dealing with a similar malady. I find myself surrounded by well-meaning experts advising me on the best practices or healing modalities. I don’t deny the truth of their claims or experiential knowledge but instead of helpful advice, I hear a litany of “shoulds.” and I shut down.
The reasons for the shutdown (or resistance) are vast and complex and it takes all the courage I can muster to shine a light on them. Why do I grab a cookie after reading an article about the benefits of eliminating sugar? Why do I look for excuses not to exercise when I know my body feels much better when I do? What are these addictive behaviors that are keeping me from making positive changes…. or getting to my “shoulds.” By the way, “shoulds” have gotten a bit of a bad rap because, in my experience, some of them are really part of a my greater truth…. in other words, they would really be most helpful. It’s my judgments about myself that are not helpful.
Examining the resistance takes courage. Seeking a greater awareness of the issues underlying my addictions to sugar or my resistance to exercise takes courage. Awareness and fierce resolve lead to transformation and that takes courage. Yes, courage is indeed, an inside job.
The lion in the Wizard of Oz sums it up as:
“Courage! What makes a king out of a slave? Courage! What makes the flag on the mast to wave? Courage! What makes the elephant charge his tusk in the misty mist, or the dusky dusk? What makes the muskrat guard his musk? Courage! What makes the sphinx the seventh wonder? Courage! What makes the dawn come up like thunder? Courage! What makes the Hottentot so hot? What puts the “ape” in apricot? What have they got that I ain’t got?” Courage….
And yet, I know, as the story unfolds that the cowardly lion had courage all along. Do I have the courage to examine my own life? Really examine it? To follow MY truth? To make the changes I NEED to make? To follow my heart?
How about you?
