Ever heard the expression, “Whistling past the graveyard?” It takes courage to walk past a graveyard at night because it’s scary. Choosing to whistle and / or make light of the situation is a way of getting through it.
We’re discussing courage this week and the ways to summon courage. You can have a dialogue with your fears – actually talk to them, as in: “Hey, it’s you again, Anxiety! Yep, my old friend ANXIETY. I don’t really need you to be here. You’re not helping the situation. Why don’t you just go away? If you have to stay, just keep quiet; okay? I know your point of view. I choose courage over you.” This is a useful strategy for acknowledging the anxiety, but deciding to make a different, more powerful, choice.
A similar approach is what is called gallows humor. Here’s an example. Late in her career as a film goddess, Tallulah Bankhead was asked, “Are you Tallulah Bankhead,” to which she replied, “I’m what’s left of her.” She chose to be humorous in the face of inevitable physical aging – and the result was a funny, but heart-centered, response. Courage can elicit poignancy in human beings and our desire to brave difficult circumstances.
Are there places in your life where either having a “conversation” or using “gallows humor” would be useful strategies for dealing with difficulty and moving forward with courage?
Can you think of examples where you have “whistled past the graveyard” and / or used gallows humor to get through tough times?