Yes. Their values & standards shaped the world into something beautiful - the good times.
It's interesting to look at our young sons with the knowledge that they might become the hard men. Hard men weren't born hard but were hardened by the circumstances of their environment. They became hard because being weak & soft was not a viable option for survival. Their hardness comes at a cost.
You are correct, their hardness does come at a cost but it is at a lesser cost than softness. Self respect is priceless. Knowing you are capable of doing what needs to be done is what self respect is made of.
It come back to that old Japanese belief/saying that I can’t find but goes something like this.
The fiercest warrior rarely needs to un-sheath his sword.
Doing the work to become the best and the knowledge you have done the work carries its own energy.
My stepdad, post Nam was the gentlest of giants but anyone who crossed him (usually by demonstrating a lack of integrity) walked away literally shaking with fear.
He was special forces a specialist Snipper and in hand to hand combat… the two most intimate ways to kill another human. Snippers often study their targets for days and hand to hand for obvious reasons.
