Where did the child in you go? - Issue #25
Dear you,
Yup! I know it's not a Tuesday, but I decided to write you this letter anyway. I shared a moment of weakness, so please read it.
I recently decided to embark on a jungle activity for no good reason. On the day of the activity, Bae decided to play a video of other people who had gone on the same adventure. It looked fun, but it was also super scary. In the particular video I watched, the lady gave up halfway. I won't lie; I asked myself, "what have I gotten myself into". But, it was too late to back out, and I was determined to do it, afraid. So, we got to the venue, and they strapped us with harnesses and gave us a safety drill. Then it started.
Ps: This picture is one of the easiest of all the challenges. I shared one video of myself finally letting go and enjoying myself but some challenges freaked me out.
Child-like confidence
Three kids were in front of me. They were just prancing about and getting this thing done as though they were in a park or Disney land. Like it was just another toy or slide experience. I saw how easily they threw themselves at the Zip-lining opportunity, how they laughed, let go and just let themselves be. I, a full-grown adult, hesitated at least three times before zip lining. A particular challenge freaked me out so bad that I forgot I had a harness. The height didn't bother me much, but the idea that I could just fall and die freaked me out, and I forgot I had something anchoring me.
Dare, try, be... it's not that serious
It dawned on me that the children in front of me had not learned fear yet. Life experiences taught us fear. Seeing/hearing stories, watching movies, reading the news, experiences, etc., all plant a little fear in us, and we build walls to protect ourselves. The more we have to lose, the more scared we are. But seeing these children live so freely, enjoying themselves with little or no worry in the world, inspired me. It inspired me to try, dare, be, and be aware that my fear is not always the reality. I remember a video I saw during the lockdown of a man who was scared of a thermometer because he thought it was a gun.
Our mind tricks us; sometimes, what we are scared of is not so big of a deal. Our mind exaggerates it all to protect us. Still, if we just let ourselves go a little bit (not in fatal scenarios, of course), we might actually enjoy the experience and yield better results than we expected. At the end of the day, you will never know until you try. Live a little—experiment more. Remember, the goal of an experiment is not to be right but to discover!
Dealing with the fear of the unknown
The fear of the unknown is pointless because you will never know, and nobody else knows either; we are all just winging it. The bridge between unknown and known is “Try” or “Action”. The bridge between being wack and excellent is “Practice” (again, action, try.)
Life is short, and you don’t have too much to lose from trying new things (that won’t kill you o); if anything, you have more to gain! So yes! Don’t care anymore about the fear and focus on the results... the world of possibility! The unknown is filled with possibilities.
With Love,
Blessing Abeng.
Ps: Check my IG page tonight, I will drop more videos showing the times I was so scareddddddd. If this letter inspired you, please share it with someone. I really hope this letter challenges you to rediscover the child in you.