Sunday, May 19, 2013

Fear's soothing elixir (#1570)

I suppose all of us give into our fears after a time and try to ameliorate them instead of facing them and calling fears out. Our civilization and our inculcated human natures are not aimed at, in most general cases, remedying fears, just managing them. For example the end of life scenario where belief systems take on a greater priority because people will reach the end and not want to be subject to the choices they made in life without a life preserver for some believed afterlife. The old, (I am dying, what have I got to lose?) scenario. I find it ironic that considerations for an after life are taken so trivially that it isn't until the end of one's foreseeable life that any choice is made about what scares us about death. Mine is simple, I will face death with the same courage I face life. Simply be myself and be grateful for the time I got to spend in an existence that allowed me to see, hear, touch, taste and smell the wonders that this world presently offers. So instead of looking to salve my fear with a potion of last resort, I live in the reality that is in front of me, not what I want it to be. Of course I am always trying to change reality to the better but that is work not an illusive escape. It has been consistent among we humans as far as I can tell that we live in fear as a default because we don't know how to admit we are afraid nor do we know how to find the courage within us to stand up to fear regardless of it's nature. I write in general terms here because I know that there are exceptions to the rule and thank progress for that. Myths, mores, and customs have their place among our folklore but the momentum of our current era of rational enlightenment, that we all live in, will not be denied by those who still practice compromise with their fears instead of welling up within themselves the courage to overcome fears as they expose themselves.

No comments: