Sometimes, when we stand up for what we believe in, we get knocked down.
We get stabbed in the back for having a conscience.
We get ridiculed for opening our mouth and speaking our truth.
And it feels like the world is turning against us.
Society doesn’t like when we rock the boat, especially when we have higher standards than most.
The crowd doesn’t appreciate it when we call out one of their own.
It can feel very lonely.
Yet we do it anyway.
We do it because in our heart we know it is the right thing to do.
We don’t do it to be popular.
We don’t do it to win favors.
We do it because we have to, because of who we are.
Even if it appears no one appreciates it.
We can’t hold our tongue.
It can feel discouraging.
The response can make us feel like we should have cared so much.
And we start to question whether we should have spoken up at all.
Perhaps it would have been better to keep quiet.
To just go long and not make a fuss.
Yet we know inside we took the proper course of action.
Even though outside it feels so painful.
Until that one person comes to us and thanks us for speaking up.
For they felt the same way.
Yet they didn’t have the courage to come forward.
And then we begin to learn that it affected far more people than we could have imagined.
That what we saw was just the tip of the iceberg.
So even though many people may not appreciate what we did, there are many who do.
And perhaps for a brief moment we can smile again.
And be encouraged to continue.
And perhaps we can find a little bit of peace knowing we’ve helped someone we’ve never even met.
How much more is there to speak up about that we haven’t opened our voices to?
~ Sam Liebowitz, The Conscious Consultant
