As part of the retreat I went on this weekend, we talked about what it means to be a woman or man of God. Not only do we need to love others (including God), we need to love ourselves. Loving others and being able to trust them takes one thing: courage.
One girl on the retreat mentioned a great point: "it only takes 20 seconds of courage to change your life". Those who went on Arete this weekend had the courage to get closer to Go, to bike the distance, and to change their lives.
Frederick had the courage to defy his master, and then again to speak about abolision of slavery. I know that having the lack of courage to do something often keeps us from doing what we want.
He also had the courage to pursue an education, which for a slave during the 1800's was highly frowned upon. If a slave was educated, he was useless as a slave because he knew what the slave owners were doing was wrong and that they deserved better. Also the educated were more likely to rebel than the uneducated.
I'm having the courage to change my life right now: continuing my education, going to Africa, and just living life despite all of the obstacles that come in my way. No matter what, life moves on, even if you don't want to. But if you have the courage to move along with it, you will be able to live your life and reach your "Arete". Just think, what can you do in 20 seconds?