Conquering Fear

"I will always have fears, but I need not be my fears, for I have other places within myself from which to speak and act."  Parker J. Palmer

It is easy to let fear take reign in one's life.  Mark Nepo tells of the blind Frenchman, Jacques Lusseyran, who was able to walk in his own apartments only when he chose not to be afraid of the obstacles.  Fear made him more blind than the loss of his vision.  So, too, for us.  Fear is disabling, blinding, and immobilizing.  When we stop to think about it, what - really - is there to fear?  Not much.  If we watch the news, we may fear economic disaster, or muggings or other forms of violence, or health crises.  But, really, how many of these things have happened to you personally -- especially collectively and on a regular basis?  Of course, bad things happen.  But not the majority of time.  Let us let fear go.  Let us have the confidence in ourselves that we will handle whatever comes up; we do not need to fear it in advance -- because most of what we fear never, never happens.  What a waste of our creative energy.  Today, let us focus on what is going right in our lives.  The good things far outweigh the negative -- even when things are not going very well.  Today I will enjoy the changing leaves (yes, already they are changing up in this high country), I will enjoy some time with family, I will enjoy a walk in the woods, I will enjoy my time providing life coaching to a dear friend, I will eat good food, and enjoy the waning days of summer.