Facing the unexpected with Courage
1952 Vimy Barracks ( An old photo that gives me strength). photo unavailable.
Today, as I sit and pick at the keyboard to think about my January column, it is Boxing Day. I do know it is a day where retailers and businesses hope for a big day of sales to get them through and wrap up what must have been a difficult year for many. My thoughts and feelings go to this boxing in a ring photo. It gives me pause and wonder.
Thoughts about a man who was in the middle of the boxing ring on the base at Vimy Barracks in 1952. This was in Kingston, Ontario. On base in the Signal Core. The Korean War was happening during this time. This small-statured, muscular man barely weighed in at 120 lbs. The man beside him was many pounds over. Legend has it that the man who was to be his competition in the light-weight class and was supposed to fight had bowed out. The decision was made that the person in the next class in weight was deemed his competition. Story has it that the man who was double his size looked down at him, and the smaller man looked up into his eyes with a look of confidence and a grin. This was before my time, but legend has it that the scrappy young man would have won had it not been that someone had spit in the ring, and he slipped. I believe this. Legends and stories are subjective, and this is the version I like to believe.
That man was my father. He faced many hurdles in his life, and I like to think I inherited his courage.
I have stared down many an opponent in my very own self-confined ring. I tried to face the competition with the courage I had always picked up from this photo. I have been “eye to eye” with cows who thought that since they were bigger could have me high-tail out of their way. My legs would be shaking, and my voice would crackle, but most times I stood my ground. I must admit, there were times when the running thing did happen. I like to believe my instincts are good. A losing battle I am wise enough to retreat from. After all, self-preservation is in my genes.
These last few years have had many of us face things we never could have dreamed of. So many different punches. All that ducking left to right, back to left, to finally hear the bell ding. You get to stop just for a moment. I am tired of doing this. I just want to keep sitting in the corner and stay still. Not think, not feel, not move. What an impossible thing that is if you are already in the middle of it. A rest and yes to throw in the towel, in my world, is not an option for me. Photos like the one above keep me going.
People, before our existence, all around this beautiful world of ours, take on obstacles every day. Challenges that we have no idea of the kind of strength it takes. They have no control but keep moving forward.
Legends and stories have been passed down from generations before, and these times will be passed down as well. I choose to believe that there is a strength in all of us. The good news is that there are those among us who have so much courage to spare that they can carry us through as well as themselves. If we choose to sit in the corner, there are those among us who will fill in.
The world is full of challenges and courage. It is also full of opportunities and choices. It is easy to believe the worst when you repeatedly listen and absorb the negatives while skimming over the positives. I am not talking about politics. Legend has it that the same man who boxed into that ring had also jumped into the political ring. A failed attempt that showed me his courage. He tried, and that was enough for me. He may not have conquered all of these challenges, but he did not sit on his hands and whine “ oh poor me, we are doomed." He possessed the courage to try to change it. I am sure there were times when he sat in the corner of the ring when a bell went off and wondered if he was doing the right thing. He rested his body, but his mind kept thinking. You cannot just give up, just because you were placed in a difficult situation. You must fight.
Not everyone is a fighter, but being silent is not going to help any situation.
Ding…. the bell goes off. Left, right slip fall. Darn spit.
He did not give up. That is exactly what I get from that old photo.
Legend has it that we can change the world, but not by giving up. It does not even have to be the whole world. A bit at a time is perfectly fine.
Grace Vanderzande, is an author and truly believes we can make a difference. No gloves or boxing rings required.