George Washington's Strength: Press Forward

STRENGTH

"Hard times don't create heroes. It is during the hard times when the "hero" within us is revealed." Bob Riley

The Father of our Country, George Washington, is revered for his leadership, stoicism, and wisdom. It is inspiring to focus on his strength in times of trouble. Before the battle of Trenton in 1776, Washington experienced a seemingly insurmountable low.  In just three months, 4,500 American soldiers were captured. The British also confiscated 3,000 muskets, 250 cannons, and 17,000 cannonballs. There were three main armies which suffered staggering attrition. More than three quarters of his soldiers in the main army had perished, deserted or were injured.  To compound all these struggles, Washington's right hand man and personal secretary, Adjutant General Joseph Reed, was plotting behind Washington's back to overthrow him. George discovered this by opening correspondence between Reed and Major General Charles Lee.

Imagine fighting a war where your soldiers were dying, deserting, and quitting left and right. Imagine your right hand man reporting to you but secretly jockeying to have you fired all along.  Imagine battling without proper equipment because the enemy has managed to steal your guns and ammo.  All this and George Washington remained strong. One of George's famous quotes is "Real men despise battle but will never run from it." He believed and practiced standing your ground. He also did not believe in excuses, tough it out. He remarked "It is better to offer no excuse than a bad one." He stood firm and tried. He did not always win. He lost many battles but he never gave up. In the end, his strength endured.

It is helpful to focus on strong leaders who prove that strength is in persistence. Strength, like muscle conditioning, gets stronger through routine and practice. We all face times in our lives where our strength and resolve are tested. This particularly happens when we make mistakes. George Washington, too, made mistakes. It is said that Washington was no military strategist. He lost a lot. What Washington excelled at was never giving up, keeping hope and faith alive, and maintaining the course. He kept the struggling, colonial army and militia together. He inspired them to fight another day. We must all remind ourselves of Washington's strength, give ourselves forgiveness, patience and understanding and remember as Leon Brown said, "You cannot travel back in time to fix your mistakes, but you can learn from them and forgive yourself for not knowing better."