19. Five fears that you have
Pull your chair right up to my couch now. Ready?
- Heights. But only if they’re over water and there’s no barrier between me and the drop. The flimsiest barrier will do to make me feel better. And yes, I realize that if you’re going to fall, probably better into water than onto solid ground. But there you go.
- Enclosed spaces. I’m mildly claustrophobic. This means that on crowded airplanes I’m really going to want an aisle seat. I discovered years ago that it also means I can’t snorkel. Putting that mask over my eyes and nose freaks me out, even though I’m aware I can breathe perfectly well through my mouth.
- Failure. Not little failures, because we all have those. Sometimes daily. I’m afraid of trying hard at something and having it bomb spectacularly.
- Lack of control. Because I am the world’s biggest control freak.
- My kids being unhappy adults. I don’t particularly care what my girls do for a living when they grow up. I don’t care whom they love. I just want them to lead healthy, happy lives. Simple, right?
One thing almost everyone else is afraid of but I’m not? Public speaking. I got rid of that fear by joining the speech team in high school, and I’ve spent the past 23 years speaking in front of groups on an almost daily basis. I’m really comfortable with it. Now if I had to sing? That would be a different story.