“Never bend your head. Hold it high. Look the world straight in the eye.” (Helen Keller)

Life can wear you out. It’s not only physically demanding, it’s emotionally exhausting at times. The daily grind of work and chores and family — it can build to the point that you’re willing to do just about anything to get it to stop.

In those times, some of us blow up. Some of us stuff and smolder. Some of us disconnect altogether.

Ms. Keller’s quote gives us another option. Rather than running away or blowing up, we could choose to grow into ourselves. We could hold firm to the things we know are best. We could stop worrying about how others may react. That won’t be easy, but it’s possible. If we could summon the strength to actually do it, others may end up respecting us more than we thought possible.