Recently, I have been challenging myself to face some deeper fears that I possess. I have felt such determination to conquer them, yet I am finding that, as always, it is not easy. Time and again, I go back to the questions, "Why not live fearlessly? What am I really risking if I walk through these fears? What is the worst that could happen?"
Indeed, in pondering these questions, what is the worst that could happen? Would I find myself alone? No, I don't think so. Death? Well, as my father has reminded me at various times, "No one gets out of here alive." Will people not like me? Will people be upset with me? Perhaps, but then what does that mean? Maybe those people shouldn't be in my life anyway. Will I fail or make a mistake? Possibly, but then what does that mean? At least I tried and had an experience. Will I feel pain? It is painful to be hindered by the fear anyway, so better that the pain come from courage than from hiding out in safety.
Indeed, in pondering these questions, what is the worst that could happen? Would I find myself alone? No, I don't think so. Death? Well, as my father has reminded me at various times, "No one gets out of here alive." Will people not like me? Will people be upset with me? Perhaps, but then what does that mean? Maybe those people shouldn't be in my life anyway. Will I fail or make a mistake? Possibly, but then what does that mean? At least I tried and had an experience. Will I feel pain? It is painful to be hindered by the fear anyway, so better that the pain come from courage than from hiding out in safety.
In all of the ways there is to look at fear, what always comes to the surface is that it is better to walk through it than to succumb to it. May I be a bit braver with each passing day. May I remember that there really is nothing to fear.
Well, as I have often heard said by new-age philosophers, there are only two emotions: Fear and Love. Everything that is not love is fear. To me, emotions like anger, sadness, anxiety, loneliness stem from the fear that someone or something can harm you or make you feel vulnerable. Or that perhaps you are lacking something needed to feel whole. It's not a comfortable place to be. Every time you push past fear into action, you have an opportunity to dispel the notion that whatever you were afraid of could actually harm you. And even when you fail, like Edison said, you didn't actually fail, you've just discovered a method that didn't work. It's where all wisdom and learning come from. Sometimes you only need to adjust your path a little to achieve success.
ReplyDeleteOver the past couple of years, I've done a few things that scared me. I wasn't completely successful, but I did learn along the way what will not work, why it didn't work, and how I need to adjust my thinking and perception to be more aligned with the reality of how things are. Maybe this is too general, but I have been experimenting with starting two different businesses, and realized my perception of what was needed in the marketplace was not what I thought.
It's all a learning process! And it's not always pretty. But the learning can't begin until you take a step forward. The water's a little chilly, but I can see the bottom, and so far, no quicksand :)
Thank you so much for reading my blog and sharing your experience with me. I identify a lot. Good to know there is no quicksand! Indeed, every fear I have ever had has turned out to be a bogeyman. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks Carly! I adore your blog, it's wonderful. You are wonderfully insightful and reflective. Your artwork is beautiful. I hope you know and appreciate how multi-talented you are.
ReplyDeleteI always thought the purpose of a blog was to get a dialog going. So when I can, I'll be commenting, and hope that others will too.
Since you enjoy a lot of the same subject matter that I do, look up "The Seth Material" and other books by Jane Roberts. It's The Secret and Abraham-Hicks on steroids. These writings came out in the 70's when I was in high school, but was too busy being a teenager to really dig into them. And perhaps a little too young! It's more abstract and not as organized as the Abraham-Hicks writings, but also channeled works. The absolute best are "Seth Speaks" and "The Nature of Personal Reality."
Have a great week :)
Thank you so very much from the bottom of my heart for your compliments. Yes, I love comments! It is my hope that through expression of my journey and thoughts, that I can possibly inspire and also learn from others. So, a dialogue is definitely desired.
ReplyDeleteI looked up "The Seth Material" (as I have never heard of it until now) and it sounds really interesting. I'm definitely going to check it out more. Thank you for the recommendation.
Have a beautiful weekend!