Q: How do ghosts begin their letters?
A: "Tomb it may concern..."
When my son was little, we took him to haunted
houses during Halloween. He
usually went through them with his hands over his
eyes, screaming. He would spread his fingers just
barely in time to see the next exhibit before
another scream. I think he was in love
with the feeling of fear because once we got to
the end, he often said, "Again!"
There was a
sense of security and safety inducted there. His
father would hold him and they
would push me out in front. I still haven't decided
if I was employed as a decoy or the white
flag.
There's a distinction between fear and caution.
Fear is an emotion aroused by a real or imagined
danger or threat. Caution is the act of being alert
to potential hazards. We're often served a slice of
caution slathered with a good amount of fear. After
a while, we aren't able to discern one from the other.
Children's
fears, according to child development experts,
often reflect those of their parents'. Also, many
of the fears we have are based on our opinions,
which we have tendencies to hold tight, even when
offered more
information.
If we scrutinize those fears kept under our
beds, how many of them came from our direct
experiences? How many of them do we cling to, even
when presented with the truth? When does caution
become confinement?
Helen Keller said, "Security is mostly a
superstition. It does not exist
in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole
experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the
long run than outright exposure. Life is either a
daring adventure or nothing."
Halloween is an appropriate time to pull those
creatures out from under by the chin hairs. Ask,
"Are you friend or foe?" "Trick or treat?" Then,
imagine being held in your father's arms and the two
of you walking behind your mom, with her invincible
glare. Go
forward!
Enjoy "Where the Mind is Without Fear" by Rabrindranath Tagore.
