I remember having a conversation with a fellow workshop attendee at a retreat center in Austin, Texas many years ago.

Somehow, the topic strayed onto *fear,* and how many people were driven primarily by their fears, even while they *claimed* that their primary motivation was *love.*

![0008-Buddha.jpg](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/denmarkguy/EpA1xkF3z7cZhktqaQj5jCkydnjVVUxtYctfXH4pCTSNcNAhcxQFQ1WxiWkfY6xEgsE.jpg)

A long philosophical discussion and exploration followed, in which we revisited the statement that the *"opposite"* of love is really not *hate,* but *fear.*

However, what has always stuck with me *most clearly* from that old encounter is the fact that the person I was talking to spoke at some length about the *"FEAR of God."* He suggested that a lot of people in the world were only being *"good"* because they had the *fear of God* in them.

At the time, it just underscored my general *"issues"* with religions, in this case reconciling an ostensibly *"loving"* God with people living in *FEAR* of aforesaid God's judgment.

But this isn't a post about God, spirituality or religion... it's a post about *fear.*

![0010-Ivy.jpg](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/denmarkguy/23x1FYRzUmvsPw8VMrfSutWVrLgG6YhksewXFAKF6zK9FamXVgvpyCB1pivMMNiowKitx.jpg)

## *A Depressing World...?*

Sometimes I look around me at the greater world and struggle to not start feeling sad and depressed. 

I watch so many people — even some of those I know well — living in a constant state of *fear* over one thing or another. It feels quite *subtle,* at times, like we have just all been *"trained"* to worry about the worst-case scenario and outcome in every single situation we walk into.

*"Yeah, but what if something goes horribly WRONG?"*

So we forego eating our all-time favorite food because 1-in-1000 people develop ulcers as a result of eating that food. Seems like *everything* can cause illness and death. 

And what does that *leave* us with?

![0033-Apples2.jpg](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/denmarkguy/23xyZHrp1smDP26DH3jaQpm5EVA1LU4d3ML2mNgjBqvxj52VxghyNQ8BMW8JEYDGNrEM5.jpg)

I find myself sighing deeply and feeling for the many who who seem so *fearful* of everything that they barely can move. Maybe not in a *real* sense, but *figuratively speaking,* meaning that they are fearful of reaching for *anything* they truly want, lest it upsets a very delicately balanced *"apple cart."*

Of course, the cynics and conspiracy theorists are quick to point out that *"they"* want to keep everyone living in fear, because we are more easily *"herded"* and kept in line when we are always afraid.

Whereas I see the core truth in such assertions, I am not entirely convinced that we are not creating most of our fears, ourselves... the *"seeds"* are being sown by external *suggestions,* sure, but *we* create the actual *fears.*

![0120-Sunset.jpg](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/denmarkguy/23xpJrKHcG4CFzrPsMtaePZBB9XcR2JMGUJ9aeNZfW4WJAktVLgawGPmbsZMDG43M94SU.jpg)

I think of the myriad times someone sends me some panic-stricken meme or *"article"* about something absolutely horrible going on... and it takes no more than two minutes or research and a little common sense to determine that *(A)* there is absolutely no evidence for it being true — the sky is NOT "falling" — and *(B)* it is actually four years old and has been doing the rounds on the web all that time.

Again, I feel a little sadness... someone sent me this — ostensibly with *"good intentions"* — ultimately with the motivation *"here's something to be terrified of!"*

But *why?* Why do you want to be terrified? Why are you *actively looking* for things to be terrified of?

![0318-Tofte2.jpg](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/denmarkguy/EoAU1HPynEeuZznW4MayUc94qK4iX5bktzn68EKZHuEwbnMroFBkZaVTdcUGVC2ULPP.jpg)

## *We Don't Have to Look Far!*

Seems there is *always* something to be afraid of... even close at hand.

*"What if the government outlaws cryptocurrency?"*
*"What if Hive goes to 10 cents?"*
*"What if we have hyperinflation?"*

And what if they *don't?* What if crypto simply becomes what it originally set out to be? What if there *isn't* some giant economic meltdown that results in *"starvation and blood in the streets,"* but instead just a gradual *restructuring* of the economic system, as we know it? 

Have we really become so *jaded* that the only thing we actually pay attention to is some version of *"death and dismemberment,"* rather than just *quiet gradual change?*

Of course, it's not a *new* conundrum. The journalistic phrase *"if it bleeds, it leads"* is quite old... referring to the fact that aforesaid *"death and dismemberment"* sells news far better than *good* news.

Maybe we just *want* to live in fear! That's a scary thought...

Thanks for reading, and have a great remainder of your weekend!

***How about YOU? What is your relationship with fear? Do you think there is too much fear in the world; that we are too fear-based? Or is it all just "reality?" Comments, feedback and other interaction is invited and welcomed! Because — after all — SOCIAL content is about interacting, right? Leave a comment — share your experiences — be part of the conversation!***

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