Courage of being afraid

Inside of me there is this weird, old and somewhat dark fascination with the Italian Mafia. It's not that I condone any of its negative aspects, not one bit. Had I been asked to delve deeper, I would label it as a childish curiosity at the way this phenomenon has seeped into all of society's cracks and the loss of inhibition towards committing atrocious crimes...extermination with the intent of establishing and solidifying power.

Browsing through the countless video clips on youtube, I came across a short interview which had Mr. Giovanni Falcone as the subject. Mr. Falcone, a Sicilian high-profile judge, was the mastermind behind the maxi trial that put behind bars hundreds of Mafia soldiers and bosses. A person of immense integrity, strength, determination and a man driven by principles which at the end cost him his dear life.

During this particular interview, Mr. Falcone was asked if he ever feared for his life. At that stage he was constantly shadowed by security forces, spent most of his time inside and the pressure of being murdered could be felt, smelt and touched inside the city of Palermo.

The answer to that question deserves this new paragraph, this blog entry and our total respect. The judge, with a stricking, yet fitting smile, replied that it was not important to determine the level of fear in someone. What's important is to learn to live with one's fear, not allowing it to emotionally take over. That is what defines courage, the ability to face your fear. Without fear, there is no courage, but only a state of unconsciousness.

This triggerred a serious ponder and it warms my heart to think that something so beautiful could come up during such a difficult time. Mr. Falcone was killed a few weeks later, lifting him to hero status, which I fully endorse. Men so truthfully loyal to their beliefs are like a drop of rain on the sun's surface.

It's perfectly fine and normal to be afraid, nothing to feel ashamed about. We all have our inner fears and we should all learn how to deal with them so that they never take over. Keep in control, embrace your fear, live with it, respect it, but show it you're the one who commands, the one who calls the shots. That is what makes us brave...

Riposa in pace carissimo Sig. Falcone.