Saturday, January 2, 2010


When we were kids most our fears were a bit ridiculous. There was nobody under my bed, nothing dangerous happened when I flushed the toilet, and my dolls never did come alive (a big fear after accidentally watching Chucky. My brother left in the VCR and my mischievous self found it.) Then we hit adolescence. We freak out about boys (or girls, depending on whose reading). We freak out about the most materialistic things. We typically can't stand our parents, we're worried about trends, being liked, being disliked, a zit, and we think we know it all. Then we grow-up (or at least a little bit, again depends on whose reading). Maybe we have some real fears like death, love, figuring ourselves out...

But then again, maybe they are just as ridiculous. In 2007, I decided to face some of my fears. I started swimming and rock climbing. See I tend to like to be grounded, on my feet, but it was time to change things up. I did a couple races to get over the anxiety of racing and continued doing that in 2008 and obviously 2009. Sure I still have other fears like loosing people I love, etc. But I think most our fears isolate us, prevent us from living our life. They keep us from doing things that are pretty spectacular and pretty average all at the same time.

When I was in New York a couple weeks ago, my almost two year old nephew (the one I had the joy of bringing into the world) was having a horrible time sleeping at night. He was scared, crying whenever he woke-up. He couldn't vocalize what he needed, but just having another person in the room put him back to sleep. It was about the most adorable thing when my dad went upstairs, laid next to him, and just rested his hand in his crib. Maybe that is all we need, someone to be with us when we're scared.

I am not sure where I was going with this... just another one of my rambling blogs. I am sure I'll have much more to say in 2010, wow 2010! Here is to enjoying life fearlessly!

7 comments:

willgotthardt said...
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trailturtle said...

Great post for "rambling"--more like wisdom beyond your years! Goes along with your "epiphany" year...congrats on a great one. Still remember you passing me when you did your 50k at Pirates Cove to finish faster than my 30K!...and that turned out to be just a "warm up" for you!
All the best for a fearless 2010, Ann

bjs said...

love this
mom

tri-sportsgirl said...

I agree. Most of our fears are just illusions. When we face them, we often learn they are actually either our greatest strengths or a piece of the puzzle leading to our greatest joy. It is incredible to watch a person whom not only lives life, but takes time to reflect on it and move forward from there. So Cool!

Mark Tanaka (Ultrailnakaman) said...

well put, though I do think there are some things my 2-year-old would be MORE scared of.....

Anonymous said...
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Soulrunner (Marco) said...

Hello Caitlin,
a beautiful story.
I hope you are well.
we have talked to each other at the Trailrun worldmasterss.

says hello kind
Marco the Soulrunner
from Germany