Brave
Definition - showing no fear of dangerous or difficult things.
One thing I like to do now and again is to take little adventures to myself. The confidence it gives me is beyond what I can even describe. That being said, when I've told people, people who know me well that I'm taking a trip to another city on my own, I always get the same reaction - "You're brave for doing that"
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| What Constitutes As Being Brave? |
Now, this is where I get my knickers in a twist. I don't see how me choosing to travel anywhere on my own is brave. It's not like somebody has forced my hand and made it compulsory for me to book train tickets, find a hotel to stay in or meet new people. It is MY choice to travel on my own, nobody else's. Me choosing to travel on my own isn't brave, it's a choice I've made. Is it brave of me to travel on my own because I'm a woman? Is it because we are perceived as being weak? Let me tell you, we bloody are NOT!
This got me thinking about labelling a situation or event as brave - what situation do we perceive as being brave?
For me, there are certain types of being brave -
1) Being a soldier and going to war - that is brave
2) Having an injection when you have a phobia of needles - that is brave
3) A Liverpool fan going inside an Everton themed pub - that is brave. Or stupid, however, you look at it.
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| What Constitutes As Being Brave? |
Those are just examples. There are so many other life events or situations I could name that would definitely qualify as being brave. We all see bravery in different contexts, as I've listed in the examples above. We are all afraid of different things, some people have phobias, for some, it's just pure fear.
People may say that me fighting Cystic Fibrosis on a daily basis is brave. Hmm, I find this debatable and this is coming from a person who does have it! I think because I have not known anything different, it doesn't seem a courageous thing to me. To others, it would seem that way because they're healthy and wouldn't know what it is really like to have an illness like mine. I remember doctors and nurses saying to me in the clinic when I was younger - "I need you to be brave for me" whenever I needle was about to prick my arm/hand. Yep, I'll try not to cry whilst a sharp thing is being shoved into my skin. That is one phrase I despise.
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| What Constitutes As Being Brave? |
To sum up, being brave is doing something that overwhelms you with fear. It's going for something that you never thought was possible because of the fear of failure. You have nothing to fear but fear itself.
Let me know your thoughts on being brave!
Lucy
This is an interesting post, I'd personally say that gong on so many adventures by yourself is brave but that's because my anxiety makes me terrified of things like that. I guess it means different things to different people!
ReplyDeleteSoph - https://sophhearts.com x
Anxiety is such an awful thing, it’s stopped me from making trips sometimes too! x
DeleteI guess 'Brave' can mean many different things to a person. I wouldn't have the courage to go on a trip for longer than a day on my own, but would embrace the chaallenge!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing!
Aimsy xoxo
https://www.aimsysantics.co.uk
Yeah it can Aimsy, bravery means so many different things to different people xx
DeleteI love this post, and completely agree with what you've essentially said at the end about it being different for different people. Personally, travelling alone would be a super brave thing for me to do (and I'm hoping to in December to see a friend who's at uni), but if you're used to it, then I can see why it wouldn't personally seem like a brave thing to do for you.
ReplyDeleteI can emphasise where you're coming from with the whole disability thing, too; people constantly tell me I'm brave for living with my autism, and it's something I can't comprehend because like you said, I've never known anything different. Brave to speak out against it and face the wrath of passionate people who have complete opposite beliefs to myself and are likely to insult me to get their point across? Maybe. But not for having the condition itself.
Such a thought provoking post! X
Rebekah Gillian | https://rebekahgillian.co.uk/
I'm so glad you loved this post Rebekah! I hope you get to see your friend in December lovely, travelling solo is brave! It's hard for people to empathise with someone who has an illness as they don't truly know what it's like to live with an illness! x
DeleteThis was really interesting. To me, I think being brave is doing something you know has serious risks/ danger involved (like war) or doing something that pushes you far outside of your comfort zone. I guess to some people, travelling alone would be brave, because it's not something they're comfortable with. I guess what that is varies for each person x
ReplyDeleteSophie
www.glowsteady.co.uk
It does vary between each person Sophie, most definitely x
DeleteI definitely agree with you here, I think everyone has their own definition of what being brave is for them. I think that being put out of your comfort Zone is brave whatever it may be. Xx
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely Aaliyah, stepping outside of your comfort zone is such a courageous thing to do xx
DeleteI personally think traveling solo is brave, but that's just because I'm an anxious person! I think being brave means different things to different people. Some things I do that are out of my comfort zone but totally normal for other people are things I consider brave. But that's just my personal definition of it! I also think nurses are brave for dealing with the emotional side of all the hard work in the medical field, teachers are brave (dealing with children AND trying to teach them??), and so many more. But I know they probably wouldn't consider what they do brave either, like your solo trips!
ReplyDeleteBut next time someone says you're brave for going on trips by yourself, you should just do a hair flip and say, "I know, right?" and just walk away all confident. Traveling by yourself may not feel brave to you, but you'll totally be a BA to them for acting that way, haha.
Emily | https://www.thatweirdgirllife.com
Coming from someone who used to work in primary schools, I completely agree with you on that one! Also with me seeing nurses at my clinic in Cardiff, I can understand the emotional side of things in regards to their job, I never thought of reacting that way about travelling solo! x
DeleteFor me, bravery is feeling the fear and doing it anyway, for whatever reason.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely lovely!
DeleteI totally get the thing with people telling you that you're brave for fighting an illness, I get the same treatment with my IBD/stoma and as much as I know people only mean well, I just really don't feel it's the right way to describe the situation. I have no choice but to fight my illness/disability, if I could then I obviously wouldn't choose to be in the situation I am. We have no other choice but to fight and live with it!
ReplyDeleteAlice Xx
www.blacktulipbeauty.co.uk
Exactly Alice, it's lovely to know that people mean well and care, but I wouldn't describe my health situation as brave. Like you said, we haven't got a choice but to fight and live with it! xx
DeleteI love this post so much and I relate to it on such a level. It is like you ooked into my mind and knew everything I was thinking!
ReplyDeleteLove, Amie ❤
The Curvaceous Vegan
What can I say?! I'm an excellent mind reader! I'm glad you enjoyed the post Amie! x
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