All of us have fears, right? Some rational, some not, depending on whose fear it is. Take Hubby, for example. He has a slight fear of heights. I learned this during one of our early dates, a fun evening at Six Flags. We had ridden most of the rides, including roller-coasters, when we came to a seemingly innocent ride: the airplanes. The ride consisted of small two-seater airplanes attached by cables that lifted straight up into the air. Once airborne, the ride began to spin which made the airplanes sort of take flight. Very smooth and nothing scary about it; a great way to look at the scenery.
Once situated in our plane, I was giddy with childish excitement. As the plane rose and started to spin, I said to Hubby, “Let’s hold hands while we look at the scenery”. No response. “Look over there! We can see the skyline in the distance.” Not a peep from Hubby. Finally I looked at him. My strong Hubby was holding on for dear life, eyes focused straight ahead. I tried to pry his fingers off the safety bar so we could hold hands, but he was stuck like glue.
Hubby is not too happy with the fact that the world now knows that he fears the small airplane ride, so I’ll share one of my fears. This is a serious fear of mine, one that Hubby doesn’t understand. I am terrified of bugs. Small ones, big ones, you name it. Flying or jumping bugs really freak me out. Even lizards and geckos are included in this category. No, they are not bugs and yes, I understand they eat bugs. I still don’t like them and I really don’t want them around.
Not too long after we moved in to our house, I was in the bathroom when something darted across the floor. Moving the throw rug, a creature ran out. I shrieked – to no one, since Hubby was not home – and my heart started racing as I looked quickly for a “weapon” in order to protect myself. Hard to believe I was left alone in Jurassic Park to fend off this evil beast. Best thing I could find was Hubby’s shoe. Cautiously moving the door back, I saw something move under a plastic bag that had fallen on the floor when I started doing my bug-freak-out dance (which, by the way, is something to see). On a hunch, I started beating the bag with the shoe. Convinced that I had indeed slain the dragon, I put a trash can over the crime scene with a note for Hubby to clean up the remains when he got home from work. I remain convinced that I was courageous for dealing with this situation, although Hubby just laughs at me.
Both of these fears seem irrational to others. I don’t quite understand the fear of the airplane ride and Hubby doesn’t understand my intense fear of all things creepy-crawly. But we try to face our fears when necessary. Hubby was courageous to ride the airplanes with me, knowing that I would enjoy it. I knew I might be carried away by the giant creature (bugs always grow in size as you retell the story) but I faced it anyway.
When we were both laid-off, we each experienced new fears, some serious and rational, some not. We both had moments of “I’ll never work again” (totally irrational) as well as moments of “money could be an issue” (definitely serious). At the same time we found courage to face our fears and in the process realized we could overcome the new reality of unemployment. Yes, it was tough and I’m not sure you can ever be totally prepared for such a thing. But with focus and determination you can find the silver lining in the gray cloud.
Remember, something good always comes out of tough situations, even if the situation involves a kids’ ride or a giant mutant bug.
Like Tami, I was terminated once (By my best friend, BTW – he is now on the board of the agency I lead, so I got him back – ha!), but you don’t have to be unemployed to learn something from this book. 
No Comments
Be the first to start a conversation