I’ve come to believe courage starts somewhere softer: in the willingness to love yourself enough to stand alone if needed. To believe that even if no one catches you, your existence is still worth the fall.
Courage is self love in disguise.
Not performative bravery. Not rebellion for its own sake. But the deep-rooted belief that you are worth protecting, worth choosing, even if no one else chooses you.
Not everyone’s courage looks the same, but it often starts the same way: a quiet decision to show up, without a guarantee of being held.
Many of us are surrounded by people who love us but we are incapable of allowing that love in. We block love, not because we are cold, but because we’ve been taught we don’t deserve it or that it won’t stay.
We feel we must perform for love, earn it. We tell ourselves a story. This story is all about what we feel is expected of us and often we refuse to be supported or held until we meet these expectations. We refuse to love and accept ourselves until we meet them.
Without vulnerability, accepting that we are flawed human beings, we will continually wear a mask. We will hide our true selves out of fear of rejection. We will never feel truly seen or loved because we refuse to honor ourselves by embodying our true nature and cultivating love and respect for that integrity.
In truth, letting love in, frees you from the need to perform. When we no longer need to earn love and support, we see that it was always there for us without condition.
This boldness isn’t ego. It’s the sacred act of creating a life that reflects who you really are. Standing alone is often the first step toward building something no one’s seen before
Courage is saying: Yes. You can love me but even if you don’t, I won’t abandon myself.
