Fear

On my way to class, a student approached me, “Teacher, you know what my greatest fear is?” then I responded, “What is it?” She said, “Water.” Then i asked, “What is in water that you are afraid of? You drink water, you swim and it is raining, but you are not afraid.” She uttered, “No. I am afraid of the ocean. I am afraid of drowning where no one would see me. I am afraid that I am at the middle of it without people with me.” I was surprised. I was astonished by how an 8-year old student would think that way. It was an unexpected conversation. And our talk continues. “How about you teacher? What are you afraid of?” I was quieted. The bell rang. I bid bye with good luck for her tests because it was examination week. And then I rushed to my classroom.

Then realization came to me. What am I afraid of? What is my biggest fear in life? I have been very adventurous and love doing extreme things. But what am I fearing then?

I have fear of MYSELF.

Since I was young, I am very competitive in every single way. I am afraid of failing. Failing my exams, failing dance auditions, failing varsity try-outs, failing to be a student body officer, and failing in competitions. I am not afraid to fail others, but myself. That I am not able to achieve what I wanted. That I am not able to succeed in life. I am not afraid of what others think of me, but I am afraid of who I am, and who I might be in the future.

It has been said that we cannot please other people. Yes, I am not after of pleasing other people, I am after of pleasing myself. It gives a certain feeling of fulfillment and satisfaction whenever I accomplish new things, great things.

In life, we do not need the acceptance and applause of people around us. We just need to accept ourselves and applaud ourselves. We need not only to believe but rather proclaim that we can. We can surpass all and succeed. If people leave us unnoticed, be silent and let our actions made people aware of our existence.

Fear is all in our mind. We think we fear things, coz we keep on thinking about it. Oppose these fears. Face it. Deal with it.

So I looked in the mirror and face my biggest fear…but no. I had a glance of a success. The man I am looking at is the result of struggles and hardships. The man I am looking at is the man who have faced his fears and turned it positively. A man who fell but stood up. A man who failed but worked hard enough.

The journey is still long. Let us all face our mirror and face our biggest fear. Let this fear be gone and success be in our mind.