A COURAGE THAT GROWS WITH COURAGE

As you move through the rhythms of the new year, remember:

Your small acts of courage in this space accumlate more than you know. Give your courage space to grow. Let a slow-building courage remind you: regardless of all the things you feel that you need to work toward or do, there is already a fire that has been stirring to life within you.

So here's a little less afraid than you were yesterday.
Here’s to coming forth into the sunlight, one breath at a time.
Here’s to reminding yourself it’s all a practice.
You can practice courage.
You can practice being a little less afraid.
You can trust: courage is something that grows with time.

In this life, we will take big leaps but there will also be ordinary days where what matters was that we just took the time to breathe. We took time to create something without worrying what the outcome will be.

I hope today is one of those days we can all practice being a little less afraid. I hope we can remember that we do not have to be completely fearless before we do something courageous. Even if it’s small. Even if no one else notices it. It matters. Whether or not we are taking a big leap, may we breathe deep and remember: courage as a practice matters.

Remember this when you’re wondering if you’ve done enough. Remember this when you think about the mountains ahead of you that seem impossible to climb. You might not reach those heights in a day, but you will get there in time. Courage is a practice you will only grow with every age and stage of life.

Before you reach the height of the mountain, you will gather wisdom along the way. You will gather what you need for the climb. Trust that just because you don’t know how you will grow in courage doesn’t mean that you never will. Trust that even when you feel afraid, you will look back and see that all by grace, you managed to keep going. You managed to keep pacing yourself in the direction of the mountains you were meant to climb. 

Sometimes “courage” looks like taking big leaps but most of the time, it will look like a practice. A practice you grow in day by day, season by season. Trust the process. Let courage have the time it needs to grow.

As you move through this year, here's to carrying your courage with you knowing it will grow as you do.

More tomorrow…
Sincerely,
Morgan Harper Nichols
@thestorytellerco
@morganharpernichols