Origins
From aegis, the shield associated in Greek mythology with authority, protection, and legitimacy. In modern usage, the term has come to signify moral cover or sanctioned immunity from critique.
Meaning
Aegis names the moment when our service becomes a defense against self-examination. Because what we are doing is helpful, necessary, or admired, it feels unquestionable, even to ourselves. In Aegis, usefulness slowly hardens into armor, and generosity becomes something we stand behind rather than move through. The service is real and often valuable, but it also shelters us from quieter truths about exhaustion, avoidance, or the cost of never stepping out from behind what protects us.
Usage
We stayed endlessly busy helping others, until we realized how much Aegis had been protecting us from looking inward.