A Letter to Fear

Dear Fear,

Today, I decide to change the way in which I view you. Today, I release my outdated belief that you hold power over me...that you are in control of how I navigate through this world. I see past your mask and see what truly drives you and has driven you all these years--my survival and my stasis.

But you see, Fear, I don't simply want to survive; no, I want to thrive. I want my life to be an adventure, not a laundry-list of things that I had wished I had done if only I wasn't so committed to you and your conditioning. You've paralyzed me far too many times and I'm ready for a change.

Fear, you have been my faithful friend for many years and I have been your dutiful servant by playing it safe. Listening to your guidance has ensured that I am alive today. It's because of you that I am impassioned and thirsty for the richness and decadence of life. I thank you for your loyalty, dedication and your guidance. But it's time...

Fear, I release you with love, compassion and forgiveness. Your time in my life is now over. You do not hold the keys to my destiny; I do.

Today, I declare: I am free to shape my reality how I see fit. From now on, I will choose to do the very thing that scares me the most, because it is in those moments that I have grown the most.

My oldest friend, discomfort is not death--it is birth--and birth always causes a little discomfort. It is a process of becoming...like the unfolding of a flower as it stretches towards the soft kisses of the sunrise.

Fear, this ending is not an ending; it is simply part of my becoming, my (re)birth and my rapture. It is my sunrise--and renewed hope--as I lovingly kiss you goodbye.

With love and gratitude,

Regina Seraphina Filomeno

*This Letter to Fear has been included in SoderWorld Wellness Center's "Garden of Eden" as part of their "Fear Path".*