In life, we get opportunities to step up – or to step away. We get them at home, in town, in a state, occasionally for our country. How we respond makes all the difference. It does and always will.
That is what Robert Frost meant, in part, when we wrote, “Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.”
The choices we make at life’s intersections take us in different directions, often with no doubling back. Courage and responsibility, risk and acceptance of it, choosing hard over easy leads one way, while ducking the tough stuff and indecisiveness go the other.
That is why Vaclav Havel, eventual president of Czechoslovakia, wrote his provocative poetry, fought Soviets with all he had, encouraging his countrymen to put freedom above comfort.
That is why Lech Walesa in Poland did the same, jailed for his commitment to freedom, yet over time led the Solidarity movement to free that Catholic nation from Soviet atheism.
Of course, stepping up can happen in smaller ways, and does every day. We can step up at home, volunteer in ways that make others’ lives a bit easier, maybe just give time. We do it in our towns, from volunteer firefighters to leading civic groups, speaking to kids, and checking in on the sick.
“Many hands make light the load,” so an old scout leader taught me, as we all pitched in to put chairs away after a big meeting. And here is a truism: When you step up, others follow. When we choose not to, others follow then, too.
Stepping up, of course, has many meanings. It can mean doing the task no one wants to, knowing someone has to. It can mean speaking your mind when a friend, school board or group needs that. It can mean listening others vent their spleen, knowing their assumptions need fixing.
Winston Churchill once said, “Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen.” Both are stepping up, not stepping away.
Finally, stepping up can mean big risks, accepting those risks for a higher purposes. That is what parents do, what those in the military, law enforcement, operating rooms, and classrooms do. They step up because progress, growth, making things happen – on a battlefield, in the community, in a hospital or school, and in politics requires that good people step up.
We all have good examples around us, and the unspoken fact is that people are watching, kids, and others who want to be encouraged to step up, not sure if they can. The best way to encourage others, come what may, is to step up and into the fray, “seize the day.”
A final secret, not often heard, is true: We grow most when we step up. We all get the chance – every day – to change our world, in some little way. We only need to see them, embrace them. Seize the Moment! Carpe diem!
Robert Charles is a former Assistant Secretary of State under Colin Powell, former Reagan and Bush 41 White House staffer, attorney, and naval intelligence officer (USNR). He wrote “Narcotics and Terrorism” (2003), “Eagles and Evergreens” (2018), and is National Spokesman for AMAC. Robert Charles has also just released an uplifting new book, “Cherish America: Stories of Courage, Character, and Kindness” (Tower Publishing, 2024).
When I saw “carpe diem”, it was a literal answer to my morning prayers. Then I read the article.
God heard my prayers and answered them through Robert Charles and again I have tears in my eyes. Tears of despair, replaced with tears of joy.
Sometimes it may seem like he doesn’t hear us, but he does. Keep praying and look for answer in the most unexpected places.
Thank you, Lord.
Best to you for ‘stepping up’ to run for governor of Maine. We all wish you a huge win.
This is an excellent article. The dems do not want to step up. They step away. They want this country destroyed. Nothing more nothing less. They are stepping away what the voters voted for in November. They step away from the citizens of this country and fight for invaders, especially criminal invaders. They are stepping away from religion in this country and serve Satan. They step away from peace in this world and support Ukraine in a war that can’t be won by either side unless nuclear weapons are used. They step away from the death and destruction in the Ukraine for what. Oh yes the military industrial complex wants this war to make money. They step away from the economy and let inflation rise and rise. They step away from truth and common sense and embrace lies and destruction. And worst of all they step away from the citizens of this country in favor of migrants. They step away from our inner cities which have become slums and getting worse and worse. They stepped away from having a president capable of governing and propped up a man who couldn’t find his way off a stage. But he was smart as a tack. Stepping away was what we had to deal with under Biden, who was supposed to finish what Obama started. They stepped up the division of the country into millionaires and the domestic terrorists. They really stepped up to create that. President Trump has the gigantic task to step up to correct all these step aways the left did.
“” Carpe Diem — Seize the Day ” — good spirit in that RBC. Have given some thought to the connection to the idea of ” Nemo tenetur Divine – meaning it is not possible to predict the future . The uncertainty involved influences all manner of decisions in life. When matters involving Principles such as Faith , Family or Freedom are there a different significance comes into the picture. The spirit of Valley Forge – the encampment of the Continental Army in Valley Forge , Pennsylvania during the winter of 1777 – 1778 brought forth many great qualities from those who were there. Courage, Determination , Loyalty, Responsibility, Resourcefulness for example. The combination of qualities needed to set things right always needs to be above the challenges present . The leadership of General George Washington at Valley Forge was significant. The substance, the good character,the sense of purpose, the code of conduct established then has been a great part of the spirit of the United States of America ever since then.So many helped then, civilians living in that area, family members . It is a positive part of this Nation’s history.
Good, uplifting article. We surely need more of this type of rhetoric and fewer of the writings that only condemn.
Thanks Robert Charles. This is a really good article.
I’ve resolved to read this piece, daily. Not just read it, but to read it line by line, contemplating each sentence, each paragraph, weighing them individually and reflecting how they apply to my life, past, present and future.
You are encouraged to do the same.
I keep coming back to this article …
RBC mentions Winston Churchill, who in my opinion, was the most important man of the 20th century. (Read his series on WWII and I’m sure you will agree.) He quotes Churchill as saying, “courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen.” In the preceding paragraph, Robert says that stepping up can mean listening to others “vent their spleen”.
Tonight, I listened to my brother-in-law vent his spleen for 45 minutes. (His venting was justified and needed.) I offered him my advice and gave him encouragement. This is just one of the small ways we can step up and make another’s life a bit easier.
Robert’s article seems to have had a dramatic impact on my day-to-day life. I don’t remember the last time I had a dream, but I did Wednesday night.
In this dream, I met Winston Churchill. We had dinner together in a fine restaurant. He was a very happy man, quite jovial, friendly, outgoing. We ate and talked and laughed together, though I don’t remember the conversation.
In that same dream, I met a beautiful young lady. There was a fashion show going on in the hotel where the restaurant was and I thought she was one of the models, but she was part of the production staff. I was so taken by the meeting that I woke up before getting her name.
For some time, I’ve been praying to meet a beautiful, younger woman. I’m tired of being alone and desperately want someone to share my life with. The next day I caught part of an interview with Dana Perino on the Clay and Buck Show. (They took over for Rush when he passed away.) The part of the interview I caught was of her telling the story of how she randomly met an older man on a flight to England and how they fell in love on that flight.
It is said that God sometimes speaks to us in our dreams. I so want to believe this dream was a foretelling of the future; that one day, Winston and I will meet in Heaven and that soon I will meet the literal woman of my dreams.
Stepping up sounds good on paper, but it should not allow anyone to use the Freedom of Speech amendment to bully or slander others with falsehoods. Where does it give anyone the right to disrupt or stop public meetings or support terrorist groups under the Freedom of Speech? The nationwide protests are getting worse by those that abuse our Freedoms.
Heck with this, where do I go to watch our Israeli over lords butcher Palestinian children? Man, that makes for some awesome Easter entertainment.
All hail the great Netanyahu!