ahhh!!!! real monsters

under the bed and in your head

"Save for defense of my native state, I never desire again to draw my sword." ― Robert E. Lee

A good soldier must rise up to defend his people, but he must not get off on getting after others. He must be a man of peace inasmuch as it is the true aim of his warfare. He is willing to war for the sake of peace, but not for the sake of scratching some itch to mix things up.

"The true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him." ― G.K. Chesterton

A good man puts himself between the danger and the beloved. He fights hard against those opposing his people precisely because his people are behind him. A good soldier is his people's shield. He protects them from the weapons of the wicked by engaging with them directly in combat.

Nehemiah 4:14
And I looked, and rose up, and said unto the nobles, and to the rulers, and to the rest of the people, Be not ye afraid of them: remember the Lord, which is great and terrible, and fight for your brethren, your sons, and your daughters, your wives, and your houses.

We must not be the people other communities need to protect themselves from. We must not become the monsters against which the good men of that land gather together to oppose in order to protect the people that they love. Live in peace and quiet and be willing and able to defend your place and your people, but resist the urge to become the kind of person a peaceful people would need to protect themselves from. 

A good man must be able to be strong enough to fight back the monsters and strong enough to resist the urge to become one.