In the wonderful Earth sea trilogy by award – winning author Ursula K. LeGuin, a young wizard named Ged learns about the courage of facing his fears and taking meaningful action. In the first book, A Wizard of Earth Sea, Ged uses his magic to call up a spirit of the dead. In doing so, he lets loose on the world a demon from a different dimension. The creature wounds him, but Ged’s life is saved and the demon is driven off. Ged sets out to find his place in the world, bearing in his face the scars from the dark night when he faced the demon.
Out in the world, the young wizard finds he is being stalked by the demon. He flees in terror, turning himself into a hawk and flying to the home of Ogion the Mage, a former mentor whom he asks for protection. Ogion listens to Ged’s predicament and then tells him that the demon will eventually destroy him if he continues to run from it.
“These things,” he tells Ged, “feed on your fears.” By running, Ged will only destroy himself. Ged argues that running is the only thing he can do, but Ogion encourages a confrontation and then goes to bed. The next morning, when Ogion awakens, he finds a message: “Master, I have gone hunting.”
When Ged pursued the demon that has been pursuing him, it flees. Later, after chasing the demon through different lands, he corners it. As the two come together, Ged sees that the demon is an exact replica of himself. Thus, by having the courage to act in spite of his fears, the young wizard becomes able to integrate a wilder, unknown part of himself, and gain power and wisdom. He found the courage to act.
When Mr. A retired from the military, he threw his heart into a real estate insurance business, which hinged on the financing of a wealthy friend. Within six months, he had created millions of dollars in profits for the company and generated several hundred thousand dollars in commissions for himself – more money than he’d made in the previous three years combined. Although he was elated, the commission cheques did not arrive as scheduled. He called the insurance underwriters, who assured him the cheques would come shortly.
Six months later, as he sat at his desk, six security agents came into his office. They escorted him and two other employees into the conference room, where four other agents surrounded the company president. The security agents had been monitoring the president and had held up the cheques from the underwriters.
A former insider to a mafia Don, the president had left the mob and had stolen a substantial amount of money from his former associates. He had changed his name to avoid detection and had used the stolen money to set up a legitimate business. The agents informed him that the mob had recently placed a contract on his head. The business was closed down, having been started with stolen money, and all proceeds were confiscated. Mr. A and the two employees were released, having done nothing wrong, but the president was placed in the witness protection programme. Everyone was to return home, forget about the president, and pick up their lives without contacting any company clients.
Mr. A was shocked that the man he had trusted was not who he seemed, and that all he thought he had earned was being taken away. As the security agents rummaged through his office, Mr. A returned home, now facing the lowest point in his life. Eventually, he was allowed to see the president one more time, under agent supervision, to say good-bye. He asked his friend why he had lied to him; the president answered that he had simply wanted to start his life over again with his family. He then apologized, and the two men parted.
For three days, Mr. A remained at home, in his room. He seemed to have given up hope. Neither World War 11 nor the Korean War, nor other losses or hard knocks had ever beaten him and his “can do” attitude. But one con man who tried to go straight had apparently sunk the unsinkable. He appeared utterly defeated.
On the third day, he got up, looked at his wife and said, “I don’t know what will happen, but I can at least take action to make a new beginning.” He went out and began to sell again, and over the next five years, created a new company. He had found, once again, the courage to act.
She is a consultant and a trainer, and had just returned from an out – of – town business trip. It was Halloween, and as she drove up to her house, the neighborhood was filled with parents and children in costumes. She had no candy, and she also believed Halloween was a nuisance and wanted no part of it. She put her car in the garage and slipped into the house, lighting only a candle, hoping no one would come to the door.
She was irritated with the world and with herself for shrinking about her house in the dark. Children rang the doorbell several times while she remained still, trying not to make a sound. But finally, after the fourth ring, she turned the lights on and answered the door, ready to admit she was home. She saw a little girl dressed as a fairy and a little boy dressed as a monster. “I’m very sorry,” she explained, “I just got home from a trip, and I don’t have any candy.” She waited for the confrontation, or anger, or disappointment in their faces.
Instead, the little girl just looked up and smiled, “That’s okay, I can help you.” The little girl reached into her bag and lifted out three big handfuls of candy, giving them to her. “Now, you have lots of candy to give other children,” she said.
“You really are a fairy godmother, aren’t you?” marveled the lady. The little girl beamed and replied, “Yes, I am.” And the two turned and marched off.
She found the courage to be vulnerable.
A woman climbed onto the local bus and sat in an empty seat behind the bus driver. The driver turned to her and said, “Lady, move to the back!” But she just sat there. “Lady, you know where you belong; move to the back, now!” Some of the passengers glared at her; others looked away. But her feet were tired that day, and she was tired of the discrimination and prejudice.
That day, Rosa Parks, made history, finding in herself the courage to confront the tyranny of prejudice and racism through the simple act of sitting where she wanted, rather than the back of the bus where people of colour had been relegated. She proved to be one of the most visible sparks in igniting the civil rights movement. Her courage to confront a corrupt system and social order based on prejudice and intimidation came from the depths of who she was. She challenged the status quo, enduring ridicule and threats in the process.
When it comes down to it, will you have the courage to act, to put yourself on the line?
Find out in part 2.