Moral Courage - An Attainable Absolute
The little girl gently frees her delicate fingers to reveal a tiny seashell in her palm. She smiles at her companion, a little boy, who readily matches her gesture and shows her his treasure, a colourful marble. The boy smiles; instantly, they both smile in unison. They may be poor, even hungry, and perhaps without a proper home. Despite all that, they are happy, for themselves and for each other. They present a picture of happiness, and represent moral courage.
We adults may even dismiss the event as belonging to the ordinary, not to speak of seeing moral courage in it. We are not happy with our shells and marbles, for they are not shiny and beautiful enough; they are certainly not as shiny and beautiful as those that others possess.
My success is not as big as that of my colleague and my competitor. My achievements and conquests soon fade away and are overshadowed by the bigger achievements and conquests of others. Alas, it's all relative!
Moral courage is, most assuredly, an attainable absolute. It's possible to imagine having it, and it's not impossible to actually have it; even if it only means being honest and kind with others, being as sensitive to their beliefs, expectations and disappointments as we are to our own, and, most important, saying and showing that freedom and happiness are to be shared, whatever the circumstances, among all of us. Only when shared by all humanity are freedom and happiness genuine gifts of life - gifts that are for every one of us to experience and enjoy, protect and promote, cherish and celebrate.