Do One Thing Every Day That Scares You

“Behold the turtle. He makes progress only when he sticks his neck out.” – James Bryant Conant

That’s what I’m trying to do right now. In fact, I even bought this little book from Urban Outfitters.

writing. things that scare you, life, inspiration

riiight??

I saw it and went, YES! This is quite possibly exactly what I need!

The catch is, I’m not nearly organized enough to actually sit down and fill out a book like this. You’re supposed to fill in the date and answer the question they’ve given on each page and let the quote on said page inspire you. Will I keep up with it? Hopefully.

I’ve already been doing a lot lately that scares me. It hasn’t been on purpose. So I’m left wondering… does this whole idea of living life to the fullest have to be intentional? Or does it count just as much if what you’re doing is leaning on the edge of survival instincts?

The first page asks you to fill out a list of things that scare you. I can only think of a few things.

1) Creepy people (mostly men). Which is why I walk around with a knitting needle in my purse. Think about it… it’s probably the best unassuming weapon a girl could have on her.

2) Being late. Which is why I am usually 15 minutes early to everything. I like to scope out where I’m going, get there early, and possibly wait in the car and read.

3) Letting life pass me by. I’m only 24, but sometimes I wonder how the heck 24 years of my life have already passed. I wonder if I should have accomplished some huge goal by now. I wonder if I’ve made the right decisions.

4) Books about a really horrible future for mankind. AKA, Brave New World, The Road, 1984, The Hunger Games, Farenheit 451… just to name a few. I’m terrified that these stories might come true. Even if not for me, but for the future generations. Which is partly why I refuse to have a smartphone. (yes, it’s true)

5) Too much technology. I really like getting back to the basics. I’ve written about it before, but I prefer not to have a smartphone, a microwave, television, or get online very often. I get paranoid about “them” controlling us and having access to our every move and choice. I prefer to use an oven or stove to heat up my leftovers. I prefer a book over a TV show. I prefer writing letters to text messages. I don’t think all technology is bad, just like I don’t think ALL of Western medicine is bad. But I think enough of it is to be wary. Sometimes I feel like I can literally feel my brain turning to mush….. unless I read all day long, then my brain returns to its normal state.

That’s just the tip of the ice burg, but those are the first 5 fears that came to mind.

In the next weeks I’ll be sharing what SCARY thing I’m doing each day and how I felt about it. In the meantime, I’d love to know your biggest fears and how you plan to overcome them… or how you’ve already overcome them in life.

Now, along with fears, I have a good friend who reminded me that it also takes courage to do something you ENJOY every day. He said, “Why not also try to do something for yourself each day. Maybe that would be even better.”

I’m all for a happy medium.

I’ll try to share the little joys I find each day, too. The most recent joy I had was watching my sister’s band play at the Biopark here in Albuquerque, and having my nephew Carson on my lap the entire time. We listened to the music, danced, and wound up playing “star wars” with light sabers (aka twigs) and laughing.

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