After
doing some research, I learned fear is a built-in mechanism that keeps us
from straying too far from the protection of the tribe. Fear kept us
from getting run down by wooly mammoths or entering primordial forests filled
with ravenous wild boars or grizzlies. There was a time, in the not
too distant past, when human beings were prey for bigger and scarier animals
than us, not just predators. Of course, with the advent of uncertain
times and terrorism, we are feeling that again.
And fear keeps us safe. Fear is like the warning light that comes
on in your car before your whole engine blows up. As the robot said
in Lost in Space, “Danger, danger Will Robinson!”
I have had my own encounters with fear, all of those “What if” questions
that pop up at the last minute. I thought I had done a great job of
silencing that inner fear until a recent 14’er climb when for some reason
that I will never understand, I freaked out. I literally talked myself
out of climbing a mountain on a clear, blue-sky day. And there was also
a time when I was stranded in London and Frankfurt for more than a day each
due to terrorist threats to American airlines. I was panicked.
Another time I was so ill in Germany I could barely walk. I was stranded
on a butte in the desert Southwest in a hailstorm. And on a flight to
Mexico, the plane I was on was struck by lightening, killing the internal
lights for a few moments. But those times were mere blips on the radar
screen when it comes to things going wrong, and I got through them and developed
a resourcefulness that I never knew I had.
Older, certainly wiser, I know fear is part of what makes travel fun.
That sense of the unknown. Exploring uncharted waters. Not knowing
how things will turn out. My father is like a migratory bird; every
year he goes to the same place in Florida. And for some people, the
Caribbean is as exotic as it gets when it comes to visiting other countries.
Never having been encouraged to learn a new language, others shun countries
where English is not spoken – or sign up for guided tours. Everyone
runs at their own speed, and for some people, a trip to the shore is a big
adventure. It’s all relative.
The important thing is to not let fear, those “what ifs,” get in the way
of having fun, wherever your adventure takes you, tame or wild. By letting
fear cripple you, years from now, you might be filled with regret, saying,
“If only.”
I subscribe to a free Internet astrology service. It is silly but
fun. This week’s horoscope read, on the eve of my departure, “Dina,
it is important not to let fear get in the way of your life. The only
thing you have to fear is fear itself.” I doubt FDR would have dreamed
his words would be used on an Internet horoscope service, but they seemed
fitting nonetheless.
So go ahead, close your eyes and jump. Embrace your relationship with
fear, and you will come out sleeker, stronger, and ready to try new things
on your next trip – and everyday life. Travel changes us, makes us kinder,
more compassionate, friendlier, and appreciative of what we have – and it
also helps make us fearless, to meet the challenges of living in crazy times.
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