Fearlessness

"Cause I don't know how it gets better than
this. You take my hand and drag me head first
Fearless
And I don't know why but with you I'd dance
In a storm in my best dress
Fearless"

Taylor Swift sure knows what being fearless is, but do you? Do you know what it's like to just jump and not have any fears?

Fearlessness is a lot of different things. I was thinking about this as I walked with my cousin through an amusement park the other day. She's seven years older than me, and I've always looked up to her like she's the greatest person ever.

So, when she looked at me and just said, "You know, you're so fearless. I could never do all the things you do."

It surprised me. I mean, me? Fearless? Never.


The more I think about it, though, the more I understand what she meant. What my classmate meant when he sighed and said, "You're never upset, never sad. Never angry. I just don't see how you do it."

On the outside, I'm that smart, joyful fearless girl. I'm not afraid of anything. I could never fail.

The thing is, though, I'm not fearless. Not at all. I just know what to be fearful of.


All right, this is where I stop rambling for a moment and see all of your blank faces. What I'm trying to say is . . . don't be afraid of the little things. Don't be afraid you'll wear the wrong clothes or that your hair won't look good. Don't be afraid that you'll mess up while presenting a project or that you'll flunk that test, even though you studied for weeks. Don't be afraid of those things when there's so much more out there.


In life, there are some fears you simply can't conquer. I'm terrified of death. The thought literally makes me break down and cry. That's something I don't think I'll ever be able to change, because it's death. You can't power through it and come out on the other side, totally fearless. It's not possible. Of course, if you do manage to do that, call me up. I'd love to know ;)



Go out and ride a rollercoaster. Fail a test. Ride your bike up a ramp with no safety protection. Jump off a cliff.

Don't spend your life being scared of the things you can change, of the things you can conquer. Being afraid of something means that part of you will never be happy. It'll always be worrying and biting its nails. So, do something reckless and get rid of your fears.

For the fears that remain - like my worry of death - just let yourself get rid of them, slowly, but surely. Let those things that worry you and terrify you just fade away. It'll happen, I promise.