It's Sunday again, isn't it? I had such a busy weekend and am struggling to put together any string of thoughts that makes sense, can make you laugh, or inspire. This must be what real writers refer to as writer's block. Maybe the real writers also blow the dust off their keyboards to kill time while they "think" about what to write. I wonder how long they stare in space, or how many times they start a sentence and delete it. I'm up to 17.
How do I share the details of a weekend with so many twists and turns? I started out by chaperoning the 2nd grade field trip to the Ledgeview Caves on Friday. It didn't rain. But I was bundled up with warmer clothes than I would wear on a ski trip in January. Well, I don't actually ski but I can't imagine I would need to wear that many layers. I got filthy with mud but it was all worth it for a first time experience of crawling through tunnels into large caves and seeing the wonder on the second graders faces as they looked around the giant underground spaces.
But wait, not all of them were filled with wonder. What was that? Some of them appeared to be filled with some other emotion, one that closely resembled fear. Yes, that's what it was alright. Some of those kids were scared to death to descend the ladder into the caves or crawl through the tunnels that would take them on the next leg of the tour. The thing that upset me the most is that all of the scared kids were girls. And a couple of them actually said to me, "I'm scared because I can't do stuff like this."
OK. Does that hit a sore spot or what? I looked into the eyes of those scared little girls and I saw myself. At age 8, up to bat for little league and scared to death that I would strike out because I wasn't good at stuff like that. At age 15, faking illness in gym class to get out of the basketball unit because I couldn't do stuff like that. And at age 25, getting fat on the couch because I wasn't good at anything. With the help of some amazing group leaders, each of those scared little girls completed all of the challenges of the day, sometimes shaking like a leaf.
If there is anything in life I regret, it's not standing up to those fears. I'm so glad those little girls did it. They were so proud of themselves. At the end of the tour I told them they when they are 35 years old, they will be very happy that they crawled through those tunnels. I'm sure they thought I was nuts, like that old age of 35 was light years away, but I guarantee that I'm right.
I know that a lot of you have similar fears. I've seen it in your comments or in the private messages you send me. I've heard some of you say it, "I could never do that", whatever it may be. But something wonderful is happening. Some of you are facing your fears too. On Saturday, I had the pleasure of seeing you cross the finish line of your first 5K or half marathon. Others met personal goals. Admit it, you were afraid before you started, nervous that the goal might not be met. But the looks on your faces at the end of the race were absolutely priceless to me. I bet when you are 65, you will look back and say "I'm so glad I did that."
If you saw me right now, I might have a look of fear in my eyes. I'm afraid I can't keep writing this blog each week, that I can't entertain you much longer and that I'll never find success as a writer. But this current bout of writer's block is not going to stop me. Even if this is the best I ever do, I know I will look back someday and be glad I kept this blog and shared it with you.
Contemplate your fears and start to take them on. No matter what age you are now or live to be, you will never regret it.
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