Courage through Generations!

I am not very good at following directions, and I am equally bad at attempting anything technological, but after reading Jen and Sarah's blog www.momalom.com and the clever idea they have put into motion, called Five for Ten, I am determined to try to be a part of the conversation. Today’s topic is COURAGE. So here goes…

I have thought about courage a lot in my life, probably because I think I’m devoid of courage. Much like the cowardly lion in the Wizard of Oz, somewhere along the way, I lost my courage.

But then two things happened.

A wise Dutch friend of my mother told me something that made me think. Tony was his name. Sadly, he died last year. Tony was a resistance fighter in Holland during World War II. Then he moved to Los Angeles and became a nudist and an activist. I say nudist first, because I met him when I was quite young and the nudist part has been emblazoned in my memory. When we would visit Tony at his tiny beach house (really the only shack in Malibu), my Mom would give him that look that said, “Cover that thing up, old man.” And he always did.

He taught me to swim in the ocean in really rough waters. He told me to dive real deep and let the waves pass over my head. He also told me precisely what to do if I was ever caught in a rip tide. I have a healthy respect for the sea because of Tony. But it’s one thing I’m not afraid of, probably because Tony gave me information that allowed me to have a semblance of control.

But I’m wandering. What Tony told me, before he died, has stayed with me. He told me, my Grandfather, a man I never met, was the bravest man he had ever known.

This surprised me. I had heard many stories about my Jewish Grandfather and nobody ever described him as brave. Kind, yes. Compassionate, definitely. Creative and hard-working, absolutely. Devoted to his family, forever. But brave never came up.

Then Tony continued speaking in that honest, guttural way that all Dutch men seem to share. They never say what they don’t mean.

I wish I could recall the precise words, but I can’t. But I’ll never forget the message. He said that Georg (my Grandfather) by nature was not particularly brave. In fact, he worried about everything. And he feared constantly. And then he was trapped in Holland during WWII with a big Star of David attached to his arm. And despite impossible odds, my Grandfather hid resistance fighters in his home and guns and ammunition in his attic.

What made this significant to Tony was that this man (my Grandpa) went against his nature. And against staggering odds did things that put himself and his beloved family at terrible risk. And to him this is what made Grandpa Georg the bravest man he had ever met.

My other life lesson is from my young son, handicapped with a condition called Trevor’s Disease which has made his life less than easy. He can’t move his left ankle or knee and his leg is considerably shorter. He has to wear a big shoe to walk.

I remember seeing people with huge shoes when Will was first diagnosed. I couldn’t imagine anybody having to live like that. We have been through many surgeries and none of them have been successful. One day soon, when Will stops growing, the disease is supposed to stop spreading. We are hopeful about a prosthetic knee and even an ankle some day down the road. But in the meantime, my son stuns me with his bravery.

I have his jeans made to fit over his shoe, so it makes it a bit more difficult to see the huge shoe hiding under his pants leg. But Will doesn’t seem to mind the stares and comments. Summer is rolling around and that means shorts. He couldn’t care less. He wears his shorts and doesn’t seem to mind the curiosity of others.

But it breaks my heart. Again, he’s brave and I’m the cowardly lion.

He fights like a real lion in everything he does, from fencing to wakeboarding to skiing. But the real test of his manhood and his bravery is the way he handles his challenges. Head on! He doesn’t even blink.

The bravest thing I’ve ever done is given birth to a very brave boy. He must get it from his brave great Grandfather, Georg.