Humility

"The value of our activity depends almost entirely on the humility to accept ourselves as we are" - Thomas Merton.  Thomas Merton then goes on to say that we don't value what we can do well and always look to do things we really are suited to do.  This is me.  I always dream of the heroic thing I want to do instead of doing the ordinary good I can do and by doing that fail to do either.

The rest of creation gives praise to God in simply being, in part because a dog doesn't despise being a dog and want to be a penguin.  God made us the way we are to do what we are called to do.  The things we can't do, we are not called to do.  The courage comes from accepting that and from knowing the difference between what I am called to do and what I don't want to do.