Fear

Being afraid of things is basic human nature. Afraid of snakes, spiders, clowns, small places, heights,  relationships, commitment, and change. Picturing fear as just another animated emotion from Inside Out helps put things into perspective.  It’s just another character needed to help us make sound decisions.  Running away from home seems like it could be so liberating, but then fear steps in with questions like, where are we going to sleep tonight? Won’t mom be worried about us? What if someone picks us up and takes us away to a bad place? These kinds of fears help us. Fears of spiders, snakes, clowns, heights, small places, etc. hinder us. Jumping on a couch when a one inch spider crawls across the floor seems a little ridiculous. You’re so much larger than the spider, just step on it.  Problem solved. However, it’s not that easy for the person that is scared. It is not until you get the courage to overcome your fear and embrace it, by finally stepping on that little guy that you feel liberated. Thinking back on it and wondering how you let this little fear hold you back for so long. Heights are scary to many people, making it scary to fly, see concerts, zip line or even ejoy a walk across a bridge. This makes me think back to one of my favorite movies. There are a few sceenes in Pretty Woman where Edward deals with theses fears… box seats at the opera for example… why sit so high when you’re afraid of heights? Because they’re the best of course. When Vivian sits on the ledge of the balcony and Edward fears for her life and asks her to get down.  This one is partly because of his fear of heights but also partly because if his fear of anything happening to the woman he loves. Of course he is too afraid to tell her how he really feels. This leads us to another fear altogether. The fear of bearing your soul only to be let down by the feelings not being returned. Fear of opening up because it might make you realize that once you admit how you really feel out loud that makes it real. Scared to act on behalf of your heart because it could be broken. Fear of finally doing something for yourself instead of what you feel obligated to. If we let fear lead us in our decisions when will we ever be happy? Joy runs the show, you got to let her in sometimes. I was recently reminded that the best fight is fighting the loosing battle.  As it is not until you win that fight that it is really worth it. Making the easy choice and pushing your fear to the back isn’t helping anyone.  It is not until you can face your fears that you can truly live. I’m afraid of oceans and lakes… not because I can’t swim or that I could be swept away by some current…but because of what creature could be swimming below. Also, it is full of so many dirty things. However, I love to walk along the beach while the tide comes in and sinks my feet into the sand, to sit on a boat enjoying the sun above and the sounds of the water below, and to kiak and admire the jellyfish below. I don’t let my fears of the water stop me from enjoying all these things I love. However, that wasn’t always the case. For years I wouldn’t go near an ocean for fear of creatures attacking me. Yes I know, this sounds a little crazy. Growing up watching shark movies probably has a lot to do with this. Once I faced my fear and just jumped in and tried something new and scary I found that things aren’t as bad as I made them out to be and now I love these things even more because I can appricate facing my fear and enjoying the beauty of nature. You can’t let fear hold you back in life as you will miss out on all the love, beauty and security that comes with overcoming your fears. Fight that loosing battle every now and then. Let joy take the controls. Fear will always have its place but it should not let you be held back from where you want to be.