Continuing my “from the vault” series where I share some of my previous writings.
Have you ever conquered a fear? If so, I think this will resonate with you.
It’s wildly perplexing to understand and experience how fear merely exists in the mind. This marked a critical moment for me, a moment where I looked fear in the face and decided that I was not going to let it stand between me and my dream.
On Fear
Published 12/20/23
This year I checked a major item off my bucket list.
At the beginning of 2023, I created a vision board featuring images of my main goals for the year, one of them being a lifelong goal of mine to hike Half Dome in Yosemite.
Words can’t describe the feeling of accomplishment I had after completing this monumental journey, which I embarked on solo.
I began the day at 3am, hiking up the Mist Falls trail in the dark, enjoying the calming sounds of the waterfall and the peacefulness that comes from being alone with nothing but one’s own thoughts. I was a woman on a mission and kept a swift pace with a goal of completing the entire 18-mile trip in under 9 hours.
Halfway through the hike, when I finally arrived at the base of the infamous cables section, the fear and intimidation set in as my eyes traveled up the steep slope. It seemed impossible. I sat there frozen for several minutes, contemplating backing out and thinking of what I would tell my friends and family who knew I was attempting the climb. Instead of allowing the fear to swallow me whole, I stopped and took a moment to meditate and center myself.
The truth was, I had been preparing my mind to overcome this fear for months. I had a strategy in place for confronting it head on and tapping into the strength within me. I could do this. All I had to focus on was one step at a time. Fueled by adrenaline and a firm belief in myself, I put on my gloves (needed to grip the cables) and took my first step.
I called upon the mantra I had selected for this journey and repeated it to myself almost the entire ascent - taken from a poem I had saved some time ago (author unknown):
On the other side of fear, there is relief.
On the other side of fear, there is success.
On the other side of fear, there is love.
On the other side of fear, there is joy.
On the other side of fear, there is contentment.
On the other side of fear, there is result.
I decide that my fear is not an ocean, it is a line.I was breathless when I made it to the top as my eyes began to water slightly. I can’t recall a moment in my life where I felt more proud of myself. Proud not necessarily for conquering the physical challenge, but more so for the mental and emotional one.
Often our fears are things we create in our own minds and transforming them can be as simple as deciding they are not infinite.
walk boldly,
Caroline
I love type 2 fun. That's why I love marathons and dragging my friends into crazy hiking trips. You know in the moment they're going to suck. The thing itself sucks. But that memory and the experience last forever. They're always great investments if you ask me.