Sunday, November 24, 2013

What Do You Fear? (Chris Pine quote)


Last week I had the crap scared out of me by a bureaucratic snafu.  With one letter in the mail, I found myself thrust in a deep well of panic and fear.  Tunnel vision narrowed my focus to the people and things that mattered most, and that I could count on one hand.  Fortunately, the issue appears to be resolved and equilibrium has been restored.  What shocked me in hindsight from the incident is is how fast I went from “everything is fine” to “holy shit, it’s the End of the World As I Know It – Again.”  It was a shockingly fast trip.

Since then, I have been considering the role of fear in my life.  How it has shaped my choices and how it has impacted my decision making process, and how it continues to do so.  How it has molded my life.  I have also been pondering those instances where I pushed through fear regardless of those feelings, for better or worse.  

My readers should know by now that I like to link my blog posts back to articles or quotes from actors associated with Star Trek, and here’s a nice one to start off today’s blog post.  It’s short and sweet, thank you, Chris Pine.

“Fear runs our lives a lot of the time.  You can face it head-on, or you can hide in your bunker.” ~ CP

What do you fear?

I can think of numerous common fears off the top of my head.  Typical fears, like the fear of spiders or public speaking and of being mugged in a dark alley.  Then there are deeper fears.  Fear of poverty and losing what you have worked for.  Fear of getting sick and being incapacitated.  Fear of failure.  Fear of success.  Fear of intimacy and of being known.  Fear of being taken advantage of.  Fear of betrayal.  Fear of imperfection and feeling unworthy.  Fear of being alone.  Fear of missed opportunities.  Fear of not living an authentic life.  Fear of not living up to your potential.  Fear of living a lie.  Then there are true phobias and disordered thinking, but that is not what I am addressing here.  What do you fear?  What keeps you up at night?  What makes you weak in the knees or sick to your stomach when you consider it?

Why should we look at our fears?  Because they impact our actions and our emotions.  And those impact other people, in addition to keeping us from our greatest potential.

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.  Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.  It is our light not our darkness, that most frightens us.” ~ Marianne Williamson

My greatest fear is probably peculiar sounding to many people.   I fear not living before I die.  I fear not having the courage to embrace the heights and depths of human experience.  I fear getting to the end of my days and having regrets for the things I did not do, for the times I allowed fear to dictate my actions. I fear not using my own inherent power as a loving human being in the best way possible.  I fear not making a difference.

What are your fears?  Consider them.  Examine, deconstruct and tear them apart.  Shine light into their depths.  And don’t let your fears keep you from your best destiny.


“Expose yourself to your deepest fear; after that, fear has no power, and the fear of freedom shrinks and vanishes – you’re free.” ~ Jim Morrison


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