Living Fearlessly
Good morning TJMS Family.
Some of you may remember that end of the world commentary I did when the movie 2012 was released.
Of course, I wasn’t saying that the world was actually going to end… I was just talking about the need for us to live our lives to the fullest.
But I’ve got to admit, after the colossal tragedies in Haiti and Chile — I’m getting more nervous about this end of world thing…
While I still don’t believe its going to end in 2012 –trust me, the IRS wouldn’t allow that to happen – for me, the takeaway from such global events is not that we’re all going to die one day, but, more importantly, “What are we doing while we’re here?”
Cases in point. You may recall the recent deaths of the 26 year-old extreme skier, C.R. Johnson, and the 40 year-old whale trainer, Dawn Brancheau. Both died a few weeks back on the same day in unrelated accidents…
Johnson, a world-renowned, extreme skier was killed after he fell and hit his head while skiing down a steep chute at Squaw Valley…
Brancheau, a veteran whale trainer drowned after a 22-foot, 12,000-pound Orca pulled her off a poolside platform…
While most people will naturally shake their heads at such tragedy, I choose to voice a different perspective…
Both of these folks understood the dangers of what they were doing and occasionally spoke about the real chance it could take their lives one day…
I celebrate both of them because, unlike most of us, they refused to spend their lives being “safe.” They jumped in to their lives with both feet, and if they could come back, they would probably tell us they would do it all over again…
We know this because Johnson, the skier, was comatose for six years as a result of a similar accident in years prior, and Brancheau, often spoke about the dangers of her job, but insisted that she couldn’t imagine herself not doing it…
…these are activities that gave them that incredible rush, that heightened sense of existence, where – at least for that moment, they knew they were living fully…
And it doesn’t matter that it was skiing or whale training for them, activities many of us may never do. My point is about the beauty of discovering what you are passionate about, moving beyond fear and life’s obstacles to do it.
So I am challenging us all today to live fearlessly.
Spend some time exploring your passion and then carve out a way to make it a permanent part of your life…
We only pass this way once… Johnson and Brancheau not only knew this, they lived this…
I’ll leave you with a post that Johnson had on his MySpace page that pretty much sums up what living fearlessly is all about…
“I feel it is most important to keep it real and enjoy each moment, you know, take advantage of every opportunity life provides, because who knows what tomorrow may bring.”
You are listening to TJMS at its best. Until next time, this is Stephanie in Love and Hope.
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