Eight years ago I learned something about fear. It was my first day as the director. We watched the morning news with mouths open wide, not believing what we were seeing. Then the phone began to ring. “Should we still bring our children to school?” It was the first day for our three year olds and parents were afraid. That fear continued over the next few days and weeks. I was not ready for this response. Anger – yes. Outrage – yes. Sadness – yes. But not being a person who is fearful, I wasn’t expecting this response. I have encountered a lot of fear these last eight years. Fear and mistrust. And I struggle with these responses. Not because they are invalid. But because they make me feel pretty helpless. I want to take these fears away. To replace them with trust and peace of mind. But I am learning to explore the fear, to help to name it. And maybe as we name the fear, we will begin to find a way to move away from it. That is my hope today, September 11, 2009.
lining up my words 