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My family had horses when I was a teenager, and I was tasked with the responsibility of taking care of them. I was never completely comfortable with the equines, and truth be told, always a bit nervous around them.
I rode the horses and was thrown off a rearing horse, getting a concussion from the fall when my head hit a boulder. But I mounted up again and got right back on, even as I was trembling with fear.
It’s strange how the universe serves up your fears to you on a platter and you’re given the opportunity to emotionally and spiritually work through them—or not.
A Strange Twist of Fate
Flash forward to my adult life: Through a strange twist of fate, I recently inherited wild horses (not in the U.S.). These untamed horses roam freely on a large section of land with precious little human contact. While I applaud the concept of animals being allowed to wander freely (if they are safe), this particular situation comes with its own set of challenges. But, feeling a greater purpose to this offering of wild horses, I’ve embraced this gift of working through my fears.
The undomesticated equines have had the same hesitancy with me as I’ve had with them. After months of building trust with the wild horses, we’ve progressed to the point where a few of them will eat apple slices from my hand.
Recently, I was doing just this with two of the more mature horses when an adolescent stallion wandered over to investigate the apple treat situation. This sassy stallion saunters in and pushes in between the two mature horses to munch the delicacy. The equine patriarch of this group (named Gringo) immediately put the young stud in his place—and that place was the stallion’s buttocks, where Gringo landed a swift but effective bite. The cheeky teenage stud spooked and bolted straight ahead. Unfortunately, I happened to be standing right smack in the path of the young stallion and he knocked me to the ground. Thud! And down I went.
The Decision to Be Courageous
I reflected on the experience in which I sustained only a few minor scrapes and bruises. You could say this was one of the defining moments in my life. I could choose to say, “Forget this nonsense, I’m rehoming all of you” or I could use this as a time to reflect on learning a life lesson (such as not standing in front of a wild horse). More importantly than that, though, I chose to stick with it and truly work through my old fears.
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Courage and Persistence Despite Fear: We Can Make a Choice
The point of this story is that we are given opportunities in our lives when we come to the proverbial fork in the road. We can choose to take the easy, safe path and never challenge ourselves or we can choose to go beyond—or way beyond—our inner comfort zone and discover our capabilities. Just like in the movie The Matrix, we can choose to take the blue pill or the red pill.
If the task or end goal is especially important to us, we tend to pull on our big girl/big boy pants and dive in despite our fears. We have free will, though. It’s what we do with those choices, freely made, that can define the person we become.
Activating Our Courageous Inner Self
Fortunately, research has demonstrated that we may be able to activate our courageous inner self by using strategies such as recalling a situation in which we were brave. Thus, we can create a more courageous mindset.
While the challenging path is not for everyone, even the tiniest steps toward pushing beyond our comfort zone may have a positive impact on ourselves and our lives. Leaping past our safety net may even provide us with opportunities to help others. So maybe take that little step today: Talk to a stranger in the grocery checkout line, take that public speaking class, or do whatever that nagging voice rumbling in the back of your skull has been urging you to try.
When it comes to overcoming fears, small steps can lead to an immense sense of accomplishment and potentially even greater self-confidence as we learn what we are truly capable of. And when you take those small steps toward working through your fears, make sure to reward yourself for it. You deserve it. You’ve got this!