The Strength of the Fist, The Power of the Heart

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Without the ability to confront fears or trials or understand the suffering of others, any man or woman would be fragmented at best. Every human, every warrior, and every humanitarian is built to live with both a great deal of courage and compassion. These unique traits are two sides of the same coin that cannot be overlooked or undervalued.
The ability to embrace people complete with all sorts of strengths, weaknesses, failures, faiths, and fumbles wholeheartedly is essential for establishing a high quality of life in any society. This capacity is known most commonly as compassion. In an environment where people are able to accept themselves and others there is no need to convince or criticize one another. Without compassion, courage has no direction. Without direction, humans are susceptible to the pitfall of their own natural tendencies. Intermittent violence between the Hutu and Tutsi—two tribes in the same state of Rwanda –in the early 1990’s came to a head with the over hundred day genocide of Rwanda’s own people in 1994. Infrequently told stories from the time of the genocide tell of shelter offered to neighbors who were of different tribes who were in danger and of the stubborn will to endure of the families who lost everything they had (pbs.org). Without the ability to put oneself in the shoes of another, the efficacy of one’s ability to lead would be a mockery of direction. Compassion may not be an innate characteristic necessary for survival of the human species, but it is one of those things that are needed to bring quality and purpose to an individual’s survival. “The value of compassion cannot be over-emphasized. Anyone can criticize. It takes a true believer to be compassionate. No greater burden can be borne by a...

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... of the importance of both compassion and courage as equal parts of the same solution can be quantified by the number of bodies stacked in piles on the sides of streets throughout Rwanda and all around the world. Yet, when one notices the resilience of the suffering it cannot go without notice that one must be both strong and good in order to protect and love others. These two capacities work in unison to create the mightiest of warriors, the greatest humanitarians, and the most based humans of all. Despite all skepticism, something that will always ring true throughout time is that humans, left to their own devices, will always degenerate into the same ghoulish hashing that have always vexed the realm of mortals without. That is, unless each individual makes the consciousness decision to live a life backed by the defining character traits of courage and compassion.

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