Everyone has fears, but it takes someone extraordinary to overcome them.
Bravery is not the absence of fear but the will to overcome it.
Whatever you're afraid of, whether it's spiders, heights, failure or death, you must understand, fear is not genetic, it is not inherited. Fear is developed through association, social learning and classic conditioning. In other words, you have learned how to be fearful.
Bravery is when you tell yourself "Screw what I've learned, I'm going to carry on with life". Brave individuals are the ones that make it far in life because they do not let their fears hold them back.
But they still have fear. Don't think just because they don't scream at the sight of a spider that they are fearless. They are still afraid. They just choose not to acknowledge it.
And it's brave souls like that who have my respect.
I know that a lot of people fear death, I am not one of those people.
I fear the death of those around me. I fear that I will be forgotten about once I die, that my life will have been one, gigantic waste of time. I fear that I will leave this world without people knowing just how much they meant to me. I fear that my friends secretly hate me.
There is too much to fear in this world, I am saddened to say. The media's portrayal of modern society does not help this matter in the slightest. Watch the news and you will see pain, death, misery and suffering, followed by a puppy chewing on a cats ear, or perhaps some absurd story about a blind O.A.P who grew a gigantic turnip, you know, just to remind you that the world still has the possibility of being "cuddly" and "wonderfully strange".
And sometimes, that works.
For an instant.
Then you realise that 'Requiem for a Dream' is on next and you are suddenly reminded of the trials and tribulations of human life.
It's moments like these where you think "What's the point of it all?"
Sometimes destiny, or God, or pure coincidence (Cross out according to your beliefs) will help you remember that there are people out there that have a lot more to be fearful of than you.
The LGBT community, silenced by the fear of social backlash.
The LGBT community, who were brave enough to be themselves.
The "emo's", afraid of who they are becoming and their peers reactions to that transformation.
The "emo's", who were brave enough to show their scars.
The terminally ill, who fear that their short lives will not matter. Who fear that they have wasted their life procrastinating.
The terminally ill, who use their illness as an excuse to live, rather than a reason to die.
The anorexics, the poor, lost souls that are afraid to even look at their own reflection.
The anorexics, who use their experiences to help others and are brave enough to find help.
The solidiers, that essentially define bravery, who are forced to face their fear of disappointment, failure, pain, death...
The soldiers, who stare death in the face every single death. For us.
I salute you all.
If you are a part of any of these groups, then I want you to know how sorry I am for you. Whether you are suffering from a mental problem, have a high risk profession, are facing social backlash over who you are or your sexuality or are a victim of illness, I apologise for complaining about my idiotic problems and not taking the time to realise that there are worse things in the world than failing an exam.
If I could swap a day of my pleasure for a day of your pain then I would, because you deserve a day off from putting on a glass smile that could be shattered with the slightest force. You deserve a day where you do not have to be brave.
You deserve to be carefree.
