Fear

Fear. There’s that pesky word – a reality for a lot of people. Why, oh why, can’t I remember the antidote? It’s like giving birth. It’s the worst pain in the world, but when it’s over, you forget about it so much that most women have another child.

Wait…there’s an antidote to fear? I know this is what you’re thinking. There isn’t exactly on antidote. We will always have fear. There is, however, a way to push it aside. And that, my friends, will make all the difference.

This is a lesson I have learned several times; but if it still confronts me, have I actually learned it? Lesson repeated until lesson learned.

Recently, I had to make an important phone call. I’ve always been nervous making calls, but a lot was riding on this particular one. I put it off while allowing my anxiety get the best of me. I was willing the person to call me instead (it could happen because he was supposed to update me). It never happened. I stared at the number keyed into my phone, thumb poised over ‘send’. Suddenly, I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and hit ‘send’. Then all my worst fears were realized.

No, just kidding. It wasn’t as bad as I imagined. It was just another human on the line. Polite, answered my questions, and even invited me to call back if I needed to. I swear it’ll be easier next time!

It’s never as bad as you think.

My favourite band is Queen. I know all their songs, all about each member, and all the useless trivia about them that any fan would know. I never got to see them live because they never come to my city, even with their replacement lead singer. Yet one time, the official cover band called Queen Extravaganza came to my city. I bought tickets and had decent seats. I went, I sang along, I danced. I had the time of my life.

After the concert, I went to the souvenir stand to buy a T-shirt. I knew the band was going to come out for a meet-and-greet and were planning to stay as long as there were people who wanted to see them, no matter how late. As I paid for my shirt, I heard cheers. The band was out among us! A line formed for autographs. I wanted to meet them so bad and tell them how great the concert was. I forgot about my fear and found myself standing in the line. I got each of the members to sign my T-shirt, that I still have to this day. I told each of them how much I enjoyed the show.

The last of them was the lead singer. He sounded so much like Freddie Mercury when singing. “You were awesome,” I said. He signed my shirt and thanked me for the compliment. Then I actually asked him if I could have my photo taken with him! So I have a photo memento that I will always treasure.

The moral of the story is, don’t let fear stop you from doing what you want to do. I really wanted to meet him, and I knew I would regret it if I didn’t. Now I have a cool souvenir, and memories to last a lifetime.

We’ve all seen The Wizard of Oz. It’s one of my all-time favourite movies. My favourite character is the Cowardly Lion. I could relate to him. Along with his companions, he made the trek to the Emerald City, where the Wizard gave him courage. Or did he? What actually happened was that the lion gained his courage on the journey.

And that, dear reader, is the solution to fear. JUST DO IT. You don’t gain courage by doing nothing. You get it by putting yourself out there, only then will you realize it’s never as bad as you think.

What will you do today that scares you?

Be awesome and may your life be passionate!

*photo is of me and Marc Martel, lead singer of Queen Extravaganza…and a symbol of confronting fears, even though asking for a photo seems silly to be afraid of. This shows me that I can face fears…and although I wrote this post months ago (didn’t post it yet because I have a whole queue of posts ready in a certain order), it seemed applicable to post today.