Definition Essay: Strength - Courtney Tucker

Strength

Eleanor Roosevelt once said, “With a new day comes new strength and new thoughts.” This quote really embodies what I believe about strength. Commonly the word strength is referred to as a person who has muscles. That is not always the case, though. Strength is compromising for others. Strength is standing up for what you believe in. Strength is putting yourself in harm’s way for someone else’s well-being. 

In my opinion, strength is much more than being muscular. To me, one definition of strength is being able to compromise. There are many situations I get into every day where I have to stop and think whether or not to compromise. Compromising how you feel for other people is a huge part of showing strength. After you have compromised with someone who you have had issues with, now you are on the same team. This is now seen as a strength. Because of this compromise, there are more people agreeing on the same thing. Things get done in a more efficient way once everyone is on the same side. 

Strength is putting yourself in harm’s way for someone else’s wellbeing. Anyone who cares anything about another person has felt this kind of strength. Though a mother is getting mistreated by her husband, she stays in a household to protect her children. There are days where parents don’t want to go to work, but they do for the sake of providing for their children. Strength is staying up all night with your children to help them with their math homework knowing you will be tired in the morning. You do it anyway, though, because you want to provide for them. 

Strength is standing up for what you believe in. In our society, standing up for anything that is out of the ordinary, you are likely to be labeled “weird” or a “nerd.” I completely disagree with how most of society feels about standing out. For example, religious faith. There have been times in my life where I have stood out in my faith and others around me were not. The people I thought were strong in their faith weren’t really at all. 

In the summer of 2018, I attended church camp in Smithville, AR. For being at a church camp, people were not acting very churchy if you get what I’m saying. My so-called friends were cussing and gossiping knowing that wasn’t the right thing to be doing. Even worse, they were gossiping about me. It really brought down my mood, but I had to be strong to not fall into the temptation of in return gossiping about them. I used the strength I gained from God to deal with the situation efficiently. 

Strength is defined as many things. Literal muscles, compromising, standing up for what you believe in, and putting yourself in harm’s way for someone else’s wellbeing are a few main ones. Knowing this now, apply these kinds of strengths to your life. How are you strong in your daily life? How can you become strong for someone else in your life?