Inspiration for Courage

This is Jill in a recent photo I copied from her blog.  I've been reading her since September of 2008.  I bought her book about her Iditarod race of 2008.  I wrote a poem about her race for a class.  Jill claims she is ordinary, though she does extraordinary things.  To me, that makes her extraordinary.  I give her full credit for getting me into biking.  She continues to inspire me.  Her photography is amazing.  Her writing is pretty good too.  She doesn't take credit for her photography.  The other day, she wrote on her blog, "I never set out to be a photographer. I have a hard time taking personal satisfaction in the images I take because they don't feel like mine - they feel like the world's. The world makes the images and I merely observe them." 

Another blog I recently discovered, is currently showcasing people who chose one word to live by in 2009.  They share their experiences of how that word affected their year.  I like the idea of choosing one word for a year to use as a focus.  It has been interesting to read about their experiences.  I've been thinking about choosing a word for 2010.  The word I'm thinking about is courage.  But it should look like this:  COURAGE.  Honestly, ironically, I'm afraid to choose this word.  How will it affect my life?  Will I be given more fear-inducing experiences to help me develop it?  Is it like choosing a trial, like saying, "Okay, I want to learn courage this year, so give me all you've got."?  That terrifies me!  But if there is any one word that would free me from what's been holding me back my entire life, it's that word.  Am I ready? 

I think I'll try it on for a week or so before I decide.  Jill's photo is my new desktop background.  Thank you, Jill, for inspiring me.