Fortitude

According to Aristotle, one possesses the virtue of fortitude if he/she “faces and … fears the right things … from the right motive, in the right way and from the right time, and who feels confidence under the corresponding conditions.” In other words, a brave person is one who prudently decides in certain situations that it is right to endure suffering for the sake of a good, even though he is afraid. Indeed, the brave person endures suffering in cases where he knows that avoiding it would be a greater evil.

Courage+Defiance=Fortitude

Courage

If you have been brutally broken but still have the courage to be gentle to other living beings, then you’re a badass with the heart of an angel.

----Keanu Reeves

Grief

Grief is the measure of how deeply and how courageously we have dared to love.

The Bookshop

Continuing with the foolishness of my world, this week's Sunday movie at the Grandin was The Bookshop, a perfectly charming film adaptation of the book by the same name.

The pacing is spot-on, and Mortimer is brilliant as a widow who decides to open a bookshop in a small eastern town, incurring strong emotions in residents, who respond in ways that surprise everyone, including themselves.

Set in the late 50s, it feels as relevant as ever. Nighy and Clarkson are as good as ever.

A perfect rainy Sunday film when you're feeling off-kilter and courageous. The power of books, of books as friends, and the power of friendship. Never underestimate the power of believing in yourself and others.