Scribble #4: What Are You So Scared Of?

“We’re scared of what we do not know,”

This week’s Scribble is based on the song What Are You So Scared Of? by Australian band Tonight Alive. One of the themes throughout the album (of the same name as the track) is the difficult necessity of letting go of things you cannot control in order to move through life without being paralyzed by fear. With only a few days until Halloween, I figured I should write a blog that deals with something spooky, and what is scarier than fear itself? 

“No matter where we want to go.”

I’m scared of feeling like I did not do my best and therefore was unable to reach my full potential. I’m scared of bad things happening to the people I love. I’m scared to open up to others and show vulnerability and expose my weaknesses. I’m scared of letting myself and my loved ones down. I’m scared of spending my whole life looking forward to the future until I realize, too late, that I forgot to live in the now.

“Wait for it to find you, to find you,”

The thing about these fears is that some are within my control while others aren’t. For the things that are within my control, I do my best to control them. I try my hardest most of the time, but I’ve been working on accepting the truth that it is impossible to do everything right and it is okay (and natural) to be imperfect. I have been practicing vulnerability (one way is by writing these blogs!) which is helping me get closer to my friends and form deeper and more honest relationships than I ever thought I could. Doing what scares me, in this case being more vulnerable, helps me realize that there is, in fact, nothing to fear. I still catch myself focusing on the future more than the present from time to time, and in those moments, it is important for me to take a moment to reflect on what makes me happy today. As for fearing things that I can’t control, the best thing I can do for now is accept the fact that some things are simply out of my hands. For me, like communicated throughout What Are You So Scared Of?, a vital part of facing my own fears is allowing myself to let go.

“But the truth is far behind you now.”

This Halloween, after you are done scaring yourself on haunted hayrides and watching horror films, I encourage you to do some healthy reflection. Now that the candy-filled distractions are gone, what are you so scared of? Challenge yourself not to run from your fears. What can (or can’t) you do about them? Sometimes, being brave means confronting what you are scared of. Other times, the courage lies in letting go. You might realize that there is far less to fear than you thought. 

“Time to say it out loud: What are you so scared of?”

Listen to What Are You So Scared Of? here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_qvN2LxsFjA