I visited the American Cemetary and Omaha Beach a couple of years ago just to see the lay of the land and to honor those who fought that terrible battle. These are my thoughts on that experience…
…you are an 18 year old farm boy from Alabama, or a 21 year old college kid from New York, a son of a jewish immigrant from Germany or a career soldier with battle scars already earned and you are in the boat heading towards the beach, with nothing there but machine gun fire, a broad beach, a heavy backpack and water all around you waiting to take your life.
…how do you get there? How does a person get into that situation? Why do they all not just say, this is stupid and leave? What makes the German soldiers sit and shoot at people they don’t know, obviously outnumbered by the armada of ships cascading onto shore in front of them, knowing they cannot and will not win and will most likely die in the effort to hold their position?
…How does all of that get done?
One part is courage…the other part is because you were simply placed into a process and the result of that process brought you there. But, in the end, when all is said and done, the only thing that gets you through it is courage, because giving in to fear is certain death.
Who would choose to be there? I doubt any of them would have chosen it because you don’t think in terms of the actual battle, D-Day, you think in terms of getting through each day, until you can go home.
These men were swept along by the current of events and the organizational machine of the military, conditioning them to be ready at the appointed hour.
They were conditioned to act a certain way, disciplined and united with their brothers as a group to do the acts placed before them. To kill the enemy, to climb the cliff and to march across western Europe and end the war.
Courage is a learned skill, but it isn’t a conscious skill. It is a spiritual skill based in faith of the spirit to succeed where the physical cannot. It is a closing off of reality, a detachment from the world, and a focused blind faith in the human’s ability to overcome all adversity.
Courage doesn’t guarantee success, but it guarantees honor. What more can a person achieve in life than that, really? What you stand for may not be the popular thing, or the accepted thing but standing for it in the face of criticism and resistance, maybe even hatred will bring you honor if you carry out the mission with dignity.
Veteran’s Day makes me take a look at my life, makes me ask the question “What do I stand for?” “What do I fight for?” “What am I willing to show courage for?”
I did consider military service coming out of high school, even went through some of the steps to try for the Naval Academy, grades were no where near good enough. I also considered joining out of college as an officer, but never felt like it would have been the best choice of my life. I have always had a deep respect for those who did join, because when I turned 18 they had just stopped the draft.
Living a life in music does take courage. Often just getting up in front of a row of “experts” analizing your every sound, move and demeanor on a daily basis, feeling the heat to get it right and being criticized seemingly at every turn is enough to make you want to throw in the towel. But, you don’t. I’ll tell you, many do….
Why not throw in the towel? Because something inside you won’t let you give up and that is courage.
We live in a world full of opportunity and freedom, and yet fear imprisons more people today than ever before. Fears don’t only destroy dreams, but destroys you personality as well.
Here is the point of the article…in order to find the courage inside of you to fight through the fear you must be conditioned for it and be surrounded by people who are conditioning for it as well.
In network marketing and the Empower Network it seems like you are in a battle, and where you want to go is filled with traps, obstacles, insecurity and dangers. The greatest thing about being in a company like the Empower Network is that you are being conditioned for courage and given the mindset and the comradery of like minded people to go with you into battle so that you can serve with honor.
If you are afraid of network marketing, of running your own business or of doing anything with a group of people, then that is the reason to do it, to conquer your fears and fight against the forces of evil that are trying with your cooperation to keep you down.
Is it for everybody? No, it is for the few, the proud…You…!
Happy Veteran”s Day!