Recently I was asked emcee at a leadership summit and, as I always do, weeks before I had written out a welcome, an introduction. It was really great.

Then, I got on my flight and I was like, no, no, that's, that's not it. That's not what I'm supposed to talk about. And over the course of this flight, I rewrote my entire introduction and I want to share that with you today. I want to share the words that I spoke.

I talked about courage.

As we end the year, I really feel like this is something I need to share with this community.

I've been thinking about courage a lot lately. People in the world right now are showing us what courage is. As I think of what is happening in my home, Iran, I think of the incredible courage of those people.

With horrific news of what happened here in the United States in Colorado, I think of the courage it took those people who disarmed the shooter, but also the courage it takes for people to just be themselves. Especially those of us who come from marginalized communities.

What courage it takes for us to walk into the world, to be in spaces that we know that we're not wanted or that we later on find out that we were never wanted.

So I wanted to take a moment and talk about courage, love, but as I talk about courage, I want us to even go further. I wanna talk about what courage is, what I believe it is.

زن زندگی آزادی:

Woman. Life. Freedom.

These are the cries of the Iranian people: for freedom, for equality, for a better future. I am an Iranian woman. I was born in Iran. My first language is Farsi and I consider home to be Iran. As many of you know right now, there is a revolution happening in Iran.

On September 16, 2022, Jina Mahsa Amini was murdered by the government because of her hijab.

Her death sparked national outrage. Outrage that was fueled by Iranian women. This outrage has grown and it has led to the imprisonment of thousands of people. Many of these people are being sentenced to death.

And yet, knowing all of this, people still pour out into the streets.

And yet, knowing all of this, women still take off their hijab.

And yet, knowing all of this, school girls still walk out on their classes in defiance and in protest.

Of course we can talk about how horrific all of this is, how unjust it all is, how terrible it all is. But I want to talk about how courageous all of this is.

What we are seeing, what we all have the privilege to see in real time is courage in action. The true meaning of courage.

You see, we have lost sight of what courage is. Courage is not singular, it is plural. The women of Iran, the elders, the schoolgirls, the union workers pour into the streets because of one another. They understand that they can be courageous because of one another.

They understand that I can be courageous because of you, and you can be courageous because of me.

Courage is in community, love. Courage is because of community. As I watch the images that come out of Iran, I am in awe. You know that phrase “to embody the confidence of a white man or a hundred white men?” No. We need to change that.

I want to embody the courage of a hundred Iranian schoolgirls.

I want to embody the courage of a hundred Iranian grandmothers.

I want to embody the courage of a hundred university students in Iran.

I want each and every one of us to embody that spirit: courage that makes no sense. Courage that is audacious. And I am now realizing that the courage it takes to change worlds is founded in our communities.

Now, when I talk about courage, this doesn't mean that I want us to stand up to dictatorships, although we can do that by voting.

Courage doesn't have to be running into fires or going into battles. When we look at the etymology of the word courage, it comes from the word coeur: to speak to and from one's heart.

Courage is about your heart.

It's about doing things that are connected to your heart. It's about speaking from your heart. It's about being in relationship with your heart.

What I see in Iran right now is people letting their hearts lead the way. Courage is about honoring your heart, love. Sometimes the most courageous acts we will take will be in the smallest of moments. That small moment when we finally listen to our heart and send that email, we buy that ticket, we speak to that person.

So love, when you feel or when you think you are not being courageous, find your community and listen to your heart. Courage is contagious. Your courage inspires me. Just as my courage inspires you. Let us all remember we are courageous because of one another.

Let us help each other be courageous. Let us be in the right communities so that we can be as courageous as possible. I am sending you so much love.

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About your host, Shirin Eskandani