Have no fear of tomorrow; enjoy today.
Refuse to carry the corpse of a mistaken yesterday.
-author unknown
One of my biggest challenges in 2021 has been overcoming fear. You see, in my quiet time, I find myself meditating on the resistance I often feel in carrying out the simplest, or even the most challenging tasks. Now, don’t get me wrong; I recognize that facing resistance is normal. To me, it’s like salt; a little bit can enhance my performance, challenge me to complete a task, and just show up for myself. On the other hand, the anxiety causing the resistance can often, like too much salt, ruin the entire experience. So, yes, I recognize that fear is a healthy part of the experience; I don’t beat up on myself too much, any more, for acknowledging my fear. Succumbing to my fear, however, is like adding too much salt; it strangles my creativity, snuffs my flame, buries my natural flavor . . . . You get the idea? Does this sound familiar? Somehow, I feel like I’m not alone, here.
Fear, for me, manifests in many ways: fear of failure (I put in the effort but have nothing to show for it); fear of success (If I really put myself out there, what will people think? What if I really do this? Am I ready for what could happen?). Fear is the salt to my creativity, my success. Not enough fear, I underprepare. Too much fear, I either over prepare – which brings about more anxiety that potentially hinders my performance – or I yield to it completely and . . . do nothing!
Yielding to my fear, like adding salt, is my choice; but it becomes the mistake I make in not showing up for myself, in not allowing Spirit to guide me. After all, how can I claim to be a woman of faith if I yield to fear? Choosing fear is my mistake, as is the guilt that soon ensues. Soon, I am so far down the rabbit hole of disappointment that I feel overwhelmed and just shut down. Sound familiar? Perhaps, instead of lashing inward – as I do – you lash outward in anger in anger at those you see as the reason for your choice. Let that sink in: your choice. Either way, choosing fear becomes the mistake you make in your journey; if we allow it, it can weigh us down like a corpse, becoming the dead, useless, weight we carry, literally, to our grave.
Don’t let fear be yesterday’s corpse that keeps you from thriving today and tomorrow. My yogini tells me that fear stems either from the past – like a trigger that reminds you, consciously or subconsciously, of a negative experience from your past, one which imparts a conscious or unconscious sense of dread at the thought of reliving it – or from the future, as in a healthy, non-crippling, fear of the unknown. If any of this sounds familiar, then I invite you to join me on my journey to overcoming fear by living in the present, acknowledging your fear, and using it as your secret ingredient. The key is in learning and using just the right amount to enhance your own special sauce, your recipe for success. Be well!
-Dr. O