Sarah'a Essay 15

Sarah Shourds

English 09

Hamilton Salsich

8 April 2009

Roller Coaster of Courage:

An Essay on Courage

The definition of courage from dictionary.com is, “the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain, etc., without fear; bravery”. In my life, I have had to face many of my fears, such as riding on my first rollercoaster. This may not seem like such a courageous thing to concur, but as Anne Sexton says in her poem, “Courage”, courage is as “simple as shaving soap.” This poem has taught me many things about courage, and keeps me wandering about when I’ll need to unleash my courage next.

In the poem, “Courage” by Anne Sexton, many themes are intertwined within it. A key theme in this poem is simplicity. Courage is not something someone should have to live by, but something “as simple as shaving soap,” as simple as “wringing out a sock,” as simple as looking at the calendar and realizing it’s your time to go [polysyndeton]. I know not all of these things are quite simple, but looking at certain measures [FAST] in a simple manner, can give you courage and make it even easier for you to overcome that. It is important to realize that courage doesn’t come easily. “Courage [is] a small coal that [keeps] you swallowing,” and keeps you doing the things you love best. Not everything comes easy, and when courage is needed, it will show up at your front step and great you with pleasure and enthusiasm. It must be remembered that courage should always remain free. You shouldn’t hold it behind closed bars and release it whenever it’s needed- you should treasure it. By keeping this courage “covered with a blanket” and by “giving it a back rub” every once in a while, it will turn into something beautiful, and it will help you out when you need it most. This poem has taught me the simplicity and the complexity of such an influential [FAST] thing, and has also taught me to live in the moment- to not hold my courage inside of me at all times, but to let it roam free.

Riding a roller coaster may look like fun, but staring up at the towering tracks for the first time is horrifying. Last year Caroline asked me if I liked roller coasters – I, of course, lied and said yes. The next thing I knew I was standing with her and Parker at Six Flags, looking at the amazing coasters whip people into the air. I had made a promise to her that I'd ride every roller coaster with her, but to tell you the truth, I knew I wasn't going to keep that promise. I knew that Parker too was afraid of roller coasters, and that it wouldn't be so bad watching Caroline twirl from unimaginable heights if Parker was there laughing too. I could have been standing there alone, watching the dreadful drops, giving myself butterflies alone, but I’m glad Parker was there watching the rollercoaster loop [FAST] delicately. [antithesis]. Caroline does take promises very seriously though, and dragged me onto Batman- a very large roller coaster. I was terrified out of my mind, but I kept telling myself I can do this. Within ten minutes, Caroline, Parker and I were swirling in the hot, sticky air and I was having the time of my life. My braveness led to a wonderful outcome in this instance, and I'm glad that Caroline made me keep to my promise. Courage isn’t just about standing up for someone, or doing some sort of astonishing act of bravery- it’s an act of love, and willingness to stand up to your fears. It’s the willingness to dodge “bombs and bullets” for a friend, the willingness to stand up to that bully “who called you cry baby”, the willingness to love your friend.

Courage isn’t as hard as it’s made out to be- it can be as simple as riding a rollercoaster. I knew that I had made a promise to Caroline, and that I had to concur my fear in order to maintain a steady friendship. I believe that courage is more than just an act, but a way of living life, but most importantly, it can make life more interesting (loose sentence).