A Poem for the Brave Ones

A tribute in verse to the daily acts of quiet bravery.

In the quiet, often unseen work of care, whether personal or professional, courage lives in the daily actions and decisions in the most tender compex and difficult human moments.

It’s not loud or headline-grabbing. It’s the kind that shows up when no one is watching: in the small acts of presence, in the strength it takes to witness pain without turning away, in the tenderness that stays steady even through exhaustion.

As soon as I read this poem, I loved it.

It put words to something I witness in my work and conversations every day — a kind of quiet courage that rarely gets named, but is always there. It's in the people who keep showing up. Who carry weight without complaint. Who lead with presence, not noise.

Thank you

Angela Joy

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I looked for courage on the mountain top, its peak clearly defined, bold and triumphant
She lowered my gaze down, down to the valley
To the hidden roots beneath the uneven ground
Right down within the tough, muddy earth as I stepped on in uncertainty
I am here, she whispered, I am here.

I looked for courage in the headlines
The visible platforms and acclaimed places, the famed places
She ushered me back to the unfinished spaces, away from the noise and the certainty.
I’m not in the credits or the limelight,
I am here, she whispered, I am here.

I looked for courage at the medal ceremony, where the awards were being generously announced
She took my eyes away from the honours list and the finished products
To the ordinary moments of prolonged plodding, quiet trial, discomfort and monotony
I am here, she whispered, I am here.

I looked for courage in the figure heads, the influencers, those with fame and power,
She adjusted the lense of my vision from distant to so very near;
To my neighbourhood, my household, my closest relationships.
The quiet community connections grown slowly and gently.
I am her, she whispered, I am here.

I looked for courage among the certain things and the future ‘big things’ and the fearless things,
She held my uncertain being in this moment, my feet newly aware of the ground beneath them as I stood in the dark.
I am already here, she whispered, I am within, I am deep beneath the layers of trying-to-be, I am rooted in your values, your heart’s conviction, your stirrings and longings, the sacred space of your unsteady steps.
I am here.

Courage