The title of this blog is "Mut ist wichtig". But if you don't speak any German, that doesn't tell you much, does it? Literally "Mut ist wichtig" translates to "Courage is important". Perhaps it should have been "Mut ist erforderlich", since erforderlich is a stronger version of the idea (like furious is stronger than angry) and is more akin to required than important, but I think I quite like the simplicity of wichtig instead.
But what does that mean, anyway? Why is Mut important? For what is it important? For whom? Surely one doesn't need courage every second of every day, it's not like air after all, we don't really need it - do we?
For those who have lived a privileged life, perhaps not. Getting out of bed, showing up to work on time (or at all), going to class, interacting with coworkers, bosses, friends, all of those activities are done without a second thought, or maybe even with a bit of anticipation and excitement. There's no worry of failure, hardship, or struggle. In fact, these are probably the easiest parts of the day for most people. It's routine, something easily accomplished without even thinking about it too much.
The key is, though, that it is accomplished. For those who have privilege, these things are done every day, without fail unless, of course, they fall ill and are resting in bed. And even then, there is no worry about falling behind, making bad impressions, or the intensity of the consequences. Once the illness has passed, they may simply return to work, school, and every day life. Society as a whole expects these people to succeed, and do not mind betting on their continued success despite a minor hiccup. Bill still get paid, work still gets done, relationships are maintained, and nobody is worse off for it.
But imagine a different scenario. Imagine for just a moment what would happen if instead of "Get Well Soon" wishes and pardoned absences it were "I need proof you were actually ill or you will be replaced" and panic stricken families due to missed pay. What if when the illness passed and you return to work your boss and coworkers look at you with disdain and suspicions of whether or not you were truly ill? What happens when you're ill too long and your boss decides to replace you? What happens when you are unable to pay your rent and other bills because you were sick so long? Or, if it isn't illness, perhaps it's a death in the family, taking care of sick children rather than yourself, or something else? What happens when you're an exceptional employee, student, friend all the other times, but this occasion of absence irreparably tarnishes your reputation?
When you start out that low on life's totem pole it is hard to climb. You are already starting out so low that every minor setback may as well send you into the dirt below. You effectively dig your own grave simply by existing. You begin to fear any type of failure because you know there will be no pardon for you. But the more life happens, the longer life goes on and little inconveniences like illness, deaths, and what have you pop up you begin to think "What's the point?" If you never get anywhere from doing what is expected but always end up reaping the consequences for life's happenings it is hard to see the point in even trying because at that point it is simply wasted energy.
But you try, try again when you get knocked down because "things can only go up from here". And you come back and put in more effort than you did before life happened and took you away from responsibilities. And just when you think you've made it out of the little ditch life threw you in, you being to think that maybe... just maybe... this is all it will ever be. Surely life is due to throw you another curveball soon, and then you'll have to work to climb back up again, just to get back to where you started from, and this is where life is the most difficult.
But that's exactly why Mut ist wichtig! Those moments in life when things seem the most bleak are the ones where we believe that things can and will get better. Courage isn't needed then, we have hope. But as things start to go back to normal we begin to realize that our memory is idealistic. And so when things finally do go back to normal and we realize that we are doing as good as we "remembered", we need to be brave, gather all the courage we can muster, and run, no, sprint full speed ahead into whatever struggles life has thrown your way. Courage is different from hope, it requires more effort from the human spirit. It requires you to look at your challenges head-on and decide to do something to change your situation. You are forced to acknowledge the situation your in, take account for your responsibility in the matter, and come to terms with it in order to even take the first step in changing anything. Courage is what gets you started. It's where you find the strength within yourself to carry on, to fight for your goals.
Without courage, how can you accomplish anything extraordinary?
