How do you show courage in your relationships with yourself, your mate and your children?

What are some other ways you want to show courage from this moment on?

“I learn that courage was not the absent of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.” – Nelson Mandela

1. The courage to love and allow yourself to be loved by your mate and your children despite your fears of rejection, abandonment and betrayal.

2. The courage to trust yourself, your mate and your children.

3. The courage to need your loved ones and let yourself be needed.

4. The courage to give and receive, and to help and let others help you.

5. The courage to accept yourself and others with love and compassion.

6. The courage to forgive yourself and others for your mistakes and theirs.

7. The courage to listen to your feelings and others’ non-judgmentally.

8. The courage to be vulnerable by expressing your needs and sharing your feelings with your mate and your children in an authentic and non-blaming way.

9. The courage to follow your heart and be true to yourself as well as let others be true to themselves.

10. The courage to ask yourself important questions and engage in open dialogues with your mate and your children.

11. The courage to respect opinions, beliefs and values of yours and others’.

12. The courage to recognize your own limits and say “No” at times.

13. The courage to let your children grow by making their own choices and mistakes.

14. The courage to say to yourself and your loved ones “I love you.”

15. The courage to admit you are wrong and say “I am sorry.”.

16. The courage to face and overcome challenges and not avoiding or denying them.

17. The courage to take initiative to make important changes yourself.

18. The courage to leave a very abusive mate and start over again.

19. The courage to begin a new chapter after a breakup, a divorce or the death of a mate.

20. The courage to trust and love again.

As you read this list, what have you learned about yourself? Which of these ways you have found relatively easier to show Courage, and which of these are not very easy for you? Personally, some of these ways of showing Courage are natural for me. Yet, many of these ways are very difficult for me and I find that I am learning all the time.

Lastly, do you have the Courage to show this list to your mate and have an open conversation about Courage with him? Share with him what ways Courage has meant to you and what ways you still struggle with. Gently invite your mate to complete this list himself and share with you his own journey of Courage.