Far too often when people refer to courage, they are speaking strictly of dramatic displays of courage such as rushing into a burning building to rescue a child. We tend to minimize the courage that is required to get through major challenges and transitions in life. The courage it takes to stand alone and stick to your morals, especially in the face of opposition, requires enormous strength! Protecting our family and setting boundaries to protect ourselves also needs to be acknowledged as courageous.

My intention with this book is to both inspire you to embrace courage in your own life, and to remind you not to minimize the amazing acts of courage you have displayed and witnessed in everyday life.

The members of this wonderful international team of authors have all embraced courage in their own way and have felt compelled to share their journey here with you.

I would like to thank each of them for taking on this challenge. Sharing your stories with the world takes enormous courage.

I am honored to have been entrusted with their work and I am proud to be part of each one's individual journey into growing as an author.

If any of the stories resonate with you, dear reader, please reach out to them. Their contact information is at the end of their chapter.

Cathy Derksen, Curator of Embrace Courage

SPECIAL NOTE: Because of the wide range of authors from all over the world, you may notice that some words are spelled in British English and others in American English. We decided to leave the spellings native to the tongue of the author. Enjoy!