Vision and Fear 2
IT WAS Lovecraft that said, "The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown."
Good morning and welcome to Leading Right. My name is Abiodun Fijabi.
Fear is not new to mankind. It is mankind’s oldest emotion. We have learnt to fear anything and everything. We fear darkness, height, water… We fear pain, rejection, poverty… We fear death. We fear speaking in public. We have phobias. Some have phobia for cat, fish, dog, dust… We talk about our fear with reckless abandon. We are quick to express our fears in glowing terms. How many times in a day do you say, “I am afraid” or “I fear”? These phrases have become vital part of our vocabulary.
For most of us our induction to fear started early. We feared dad’s return from office. The sound of his car or his voice sent shivers down our spines. We feared school because of the teacher’s whip, recklessly administered at the slightest mistake. We feared injection, being reminded of the accompanying pain. Some of us feared mom’s tongue lash. Others feared rejection by classmates.
Some of the fears were ridiculous. I remember fearing that I might not be able to write in cursive. I had started out like everyone else writing my words in separate disjointed letters. I watched in amazement and in envy as my older siblings scribbled words after words in cursives. I tried as much as I could but my words never looked like they were ever going to be like those of the older students. I gave in to fear and gave up on the ability to write in cursives. I hope you still remember that cursive is the “rapid handwriting in which letters are set down in full and…connected within words without lifting the writing implement from the paper.”
One of my primary school teachers showed me how unfounded my fears were. She told me she started out like that too. And then she said. “Everyone starts out like that. Then with constant practice, you gain proficiency. One day, you will write very well in cursives, I promise.” I agreed with her and my fear evaporated. Two years after, I won a city-wide writing competition.
Fear losses its grip once accurate information becomes available. Once the unknown becomes known there is no more reason to fear.
Dear listener, think about this: Your fear may not be more real than the fear that I might never be able to write in cursives. Your fear – indeed most fears – may be as ridiculous as that. For example, why do you fear dreaming big about yourself? Why do you fear that you might never be able to make a major contribution to the society? Why do you fear that you might end in failure?
Acknowledge your fear but face it with hard facts of history and expose its shallowness. In the face of overwhelming evidence, most fears lose their potency. You need not allow fear rob you of possessing a great vision for change.
Good morning and welcome to Leading Right. My name is Abiodun Fijabi.
Fear is not new to mankind. It is mankind’s oldest emotion. We have learnt to fear anything and everything. We fear darkness, height, water… We fear pain, rejection, poverty… We fear death. We fear speaking in public. We have phobias. Some have phobia for cat, fish, dog, dust… We talk about our fear with reckless abandon. We are quick to express our fears in glowing terms. How many times in a day do you say, “I am afraid” or “I fear”? These phrases have become vital part of our vocabulary.
For most of us our induction to fear started early. We feared dad’s return from office. The sound of his car or his voice sent shivers down our spines. We feared school because of the teacher’s whip, recklessly administered at the slightest mistake. We feared injection, being reminded of the accompanying pain. Some of us feared mom’s tongue lash. Others feared rejection by classmates.
Some of the fears were ridiculous. I remember fearing that I might not be able to write in cursive. I had started out like everyone else writing my words in separate disjointed letters. I watched in amazement and in envy as my older siblings scribbled words after words in cursives. I tried as much as I could but my words never looked like they were ever going to be like those of the older students. I gave in to fear and gave up on the ability to write in cursives. I hope you still remember that cursive is the “rapid handwriting in which letters are set down in full and…connected within words without lifting the writing implement from the paper.”
One of my primary school teachers showed me how unfounded my fears were. She told me she started out like that too. And then she said. “Everyone starts out like that. Then with constant practice, you gain proficiency. One day, you will write very well in cursives, I promise.” I agreed with her and my fear evaporated. Two years after, I won a city-wide writing competition.
Fear losses its grip once accurate information becomes available. Once the unknown becomes known there is no more reason to fear.
Dear listener, think about this: Your fear may not be more real than the fear that I might never be able to write in cursives. Your fear – indeed most fears – may be as ridiculous as that. For example, why do you fear dreaming big about yourself? Why do you fear that you might never be able to make a major contribution to the society? Why do you fear that you might end in failure?
Acknowledge your fear but face it with hard facts of history and expose its shallowness. In the face of overwhelming evidence, most fears lose their potency. You need not allow fear rob you of possessing a great vision for change.
posted by Abiodun Fijabi at 7:29 PM
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