I ran toward the house in fear, screaming and screaming but no one came. I was crying hysterically. There was no adult around. My brother and uncle thought it was funny to keep throwing hand towels on me to evoke hysterics over and over again, until I had no more screams in me, till I loss my voice.

How did I become so fearful of one of God’s creatures? Was I born that way? Why are some people afraid and others not? I started searching for answers to my fears and realized how can I overcome it, unless. . .

There are fears I have battled to overcome and still working on. For example, my fear of snakes; as a matter of fact, right now as I pen these words, just the thoughts alone send chills down my spine. Where did my fear begin. I was born and lived in the south for a few years. I was daring, adventurous. I guess a bit Tom Boyish. Nothing stopped me from exploring the meadows, picking flowers, wild berries, climbing trees. I was fearless until . . . One day I was using a rake to move brush out of the way as I made my way to a water melon patch when I picked the rake up something fell on me. I assumed it was a snake.

I’m writing this and something that is plain now was not plain then. It could have been a twig, or vine, yet I thought it was a snake. That is where my fear began. Fear starts somewhere. There is an origin, whether we deny or accept. However, when I had children I refused to impose my fear on them. They didn’t deserve that, so when I went on their field trips to places like the Serpentarium, and one of them walked up to me, saying, “Mommy, feel it,” with snake on neck. I could have screamed to bring the ceiling down but I wouldn’t do that to my kids.

I never got over that fear. I carried it into adulthood. And now I’m back in a small town with a huge backyard and have encountered a few snakes but determined to live with them because I still enjoy outdoor gardening.

We are not born with fear. Something happens to cause us to fear. If that fear is not confronted, we are chained to it the rest of our lives. It can hold us back from enjoying what life has to offer to the fullest. Notice how I have spent time talking about my fear, opening myself up, becoming vulnerable, transparent. Talking about my fear, recalling how it got started, even writing this has brought me to the truth. A snake would never have stayed on a rake being raised in the air, it had to be a twig, maybe even a vine but it held me captive in fear all of my life.

My imagination took control and my brother and uncle helped to reinforce that fear of snakes by tossing bath cloths on me while I was hysterical.

Maybe it’s time you felt the fear and did it anyway, revisit your fear source with a different attitude. Of course, it is your choice to hold on, or let go.

Here are some additional resources to overcome fear (click here)