The Roman philosopher Seneca said, “Sometimes even to live is an act of courage.”
Life rarely demands grand acts of valor where we put our lives on the line for a principle or person we love, but it often demands the strength and fortitude to do what we are afraid to do, to do what we don’t wantto do and to do what we think we cannot do.
The kind of courage we need every day is moral courage, an aspect of character.
Moral courage is an inner voice that cheers us on, and that goads, pushes, and prods us to persevere against adversity, to resist temptation, and to hold on longer than we want to. (See my commentary on Moral Courage, The Engine of Integrity)