7 Motivational and Inspiring Stories about Finding Courage In Life | Part 6
Zig Ziglar said, “You can have anything you want, if you can just get enough people what they want.” This comes through service to others. We must learn to serve others first before serving ourselves. In doing so we have planted the necessary seeds that will bring the returns we seek.
— Rick Cox
6. A Story About Finding The Courage To Do What’s Right
Despite having a large and loving family, Claire had always focused on herself. She believed her problems were more important. Her successes were more important. Everything was more important! Truth be told, her mother did not raise her this way. Her mother had always put everyone in the family before herself and had tried to teach all of her kids to do what was right, even if it meant personal sacrifice.
At the age of 34, Claire was set up to get her dream job working as a reporter at a popular news station in Los Angeles. She lived in North Carolina, but had already sold her house in preparation for the move because she was so sure that she was going to get the job.
She went to visit her father before she left for her final interview. Her mother, who had always been her biggest supporter, had died a few years earlier. As she visited her father, she told him about how nervous she was to go for the final interview. What if she screwed up and they did not like her anymore? Her nerves were working her up into a frenzy. Her father stopped her mid-sentence and said, “You will do great. Do you want to know why? Because you are a lot like your mother, and your mother did great at everything she tried.”
Claire pictured her mother, the most supportive and loving person she had ever met, and for the first time in a long time took a long hard look at herself. An awareness awoke in her. Her mother, in her eyes, was kind, compassionate, and supportive. Was she really like her mother? She had never really thought about it before, but a resounding NO came into her mind. Focused only on herself, she did not even know that her father or siblings were struggling. Suddenly she felt ashamed. She left for the airport with a lot more to think about than her job.
An hour before boarding, her sister – whose husband had recently passed away from cancer, called her to wish her luck. Still thinking about what her father had said, she listened to her sister in a way she had never listened to her before. She asked her questions about her kids and her life. She asked her how she was coping. Her sister broke down crying and admitted that she was overwhelmed and was not doing very good at all. She could barely keep up the house. She was having a hard time keeping appointments and getting her kids to their activities. She had no desire to cook, clean, or do the things she used to love.
Claire ended the conversation with her sister just before boarding started. She thought about what her father had said to her. She thought about how her mother would not have given it a second thought to go take care of her sister in such a trying time of her life. She thought about how she had spent her whole life looking out for number one. Then she made a decision to be more like her mom and take care of what really matters in life.
She left the airport, taking a taxi to her sisters. She spent the next few months living with her sister, helping her maintain her house, take care of the kids, and cope with the loss of her husband.
Claire found the courage to do what was right because of her mother and the respect she had for her. She knew that her mother would give up anything to take care of what really matters in life, her family. She remembered her mother being happy, happier than she had ever been. By doing right, she brought on a type of happiness that looking out for number one could never bring.
As a result, Claire never regretted her decision. She and her sister grew closer than she had ever been with a sibling. She learned a lot about herself. By focusing on others, she felt much better about herself. In addition, she became a better reporter because of it! She ended up getting her dream job easily later that year.
Best of LUCK as you
Labor Under Correct Knowledge…
Respectfully,
Rick Cox