One was born on this day.
One died on this day.
Both practiced courage in the fiber of their souls and days.
Thank you, Maya, and Martin.
For showing us how to practice in ways big and small.
The courage to lead one’s life does not only involve a bold, public kind of bravery but also a quiet depth of introspective courage.
To show up in every challenge with the will to continue. And the bravery to continue even when the will is weary.
And sometimes just looking in the mirror in the morning with love can be a great act of courage. Yes, even revolutions can begin right here.
In honor of their remarkable lives, dreams, and souls, here are a couple of my favorite quotes from Maya Angelou and Martin Luther King, Jr. on this thing called courage.
MAYA ANGELOU
“If you lose hope, somehow you lose the vitality that keeps moving, you lose the courage to be, that quality that helps you go on in spite of it all. And so today I still have a dream.”
“Courage is the most important of all the virtues, because without courage you can’t practice any other virtue consistently. You can practice any virtue erratically, but nothing consistently without courage. ”
MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.