Why Courage Matters

Why Courage Matters: The Way to a Braver Life is a book written by John McCain. He wrote about his favorite stories of normal individuals. These individuals have done incredible things have done, risking everything to defend the people and principles they cherish most in huge acts of courage. This book shows many different ways someone can be courageous in many different situations throughout time.
The first person he wrote about is Special Forces sergeant Roy Benavidez, who fought in Vietnam. In his second combat tour, he was monitoring a twelve man reconnaissance patrol, three of whom were his friends. As soon as the helicopter they were in touched the ground, they got ambushed by the enemy. Soon, four of them, including the team leader, were killed and the other eight of them were so badly wounded they were immobile. Benavidez jumped from the helicopter and ran to help his comrades, getting shot in the leg, face, and head as he did so. When he got to them, he began treating their wounds, calling in for the helicopter to get closer to his spot. He got his comrades into the helicopter one or two people at a time. Before getting into the helicopter himself, Benavidez went to retrieve classified documents from the fallen team leader, getting shot in the stomach and shrapnel cutting his back in the process. He was shot several more times but continued to fight. For SIX more hours. By the end of it, he was bleeding profusely, his intestines were spilling out of the wounds in his

was a very courageous man in US history. Even though he did not fight in a war in a different country and help his fellow soldiers like the others I have mentioned, he stood up for what he believed in. King was a Baptist minister and and social activist who was leader in the African American Civil Rights. He played a pivotal role in ending the legal segregation in the South as well as the creation of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. He gave his famous “I Have A Dream Speech” in 1963 and he received a bunch awards, which included the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated by James Earl Ray on April 4, 1968 in Memphis,

. . because it guarantees all the others.” -- Winston Churchill. “We are taught to understand, correctly, that courage is not the absence of fear but the capacity for action despite our fears,” -- John McCain. The stories of the huge acts of courage in this book John McCain wrote were very inspiring and extremely amazing. They have inspired me to stand up for what I think is right and for the people I care about no matter what others think or what the consequences might be. Why Courage Matters: The Way To A Braver Life is an excellent book that everyone should read so they know the different ways they can be courageous and do what is right. I am very happy and very thankful that my parents had this book and suggested it as a book I should read. The individuals mentioned in this book are fantastic and their stories of courage are interesting to read and should inspire anyone who reads them. Having the courage to stand up for what is right and the people we care about is a very important quality for humans to have, and the stories in this book are good examples of why that statement in true. On the back of the book, there is a quote that I now love: “We’re all afraid of something. Some have more fears than others. The one we must all guard against is the fear of ourselves. Do not let the sensation of your fear convince you that you are too weak to have courage. Fear is the opportunity for courage, not proof of cowardice. No one is born