How Do You Handle Fear? Do you Jump Right In? Or Watch from The Sidelines?

We are often faced with decisions and sometimes those decisions can paralyze us with fear.

How do we respond when this happens?

We summer at the NJ shore where the ocean is a beautiful, wild creature just a short walk away.  One summer, we invited friends from the Midwest to visit and it was such a joy, since they never have seen the ocean before.

Amazingly, the two children approached the ocean in very different ways.  The girl, Celeste squealed in delight as she ran towards the water jumping right in unafraid.  The other child, Eric approached the ocean with more caution and hesitation.

He first studied the waves and the children playing inside.  As he held my hand tightly, I could feel the worry and apprehension.   He could see the intensity of the water and feel the strength of the tide pulling the sand around his ankles.

He stood there for the longest time and I could see the conflict over his face.  He wanted to play with the other children but the fear of danger was so overwhelming that he was paralyzed.

His concern was valid.  The ocean can be dangerous and unpredictable.  It isn’t something we can manage or control but the ocean can be full of delight and filled with adventure.  It can be exhilarating and a place for memories, but only for those that dive in and take the chance

So what about you?  When the waves roll in, do you dive in or do you stand back and watch?

This is the decision we have to make every day when uncertainties enter our lives.  When we are faced with fear, we have a choice, to overcome or to let it paralyze us.

Only remember this, FEAR stands for False Evidence Appearing Real and if you don’t push forward, you will miss out on a world of opportunities.

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