I was at a family reunion and playing with my three and a half year old niece in the outdoor pool. For my niece, playing in the pool means standing on the first step and staying there. She wants to go in the water and play, but she is afraid of the water and so it is on the first step that we stay.

On this particular day, she suddenly, while holding my hands of course, jumped to the second stair and said look Hayley I’m 2 years old. (Her disappearing legs made her feel shorter, thus younger.) She eyed the third step and before long she jumped onto the third step crying out: Look Hayley I’m 1 years old. (The water now up to her belly). Then she eyed the fourth and final step and quickly jumped back to the first step. She stayed there for a while but then the game started again. This time she went all the way down to the fourth step which fully immersed her body in the water, leaving just her head and neck sticking out. She yelled out: Look Hayley: I’m zero years old. Then she looked at me and cried out with great enthusiasm: Hayley, I used to be scared and now I’m brave. I used to be so scared and now I’m brave.

Her words echoed in my head and it was as if she was mirroring a process I was still in the middle of. It almost seemed like a voice from beyond was speaking through my niece and saying: Hayley, face your fears. Find your bravery.

For you see, I, like all of us, have been dealing with my own fears.

As I sat at the waters edge, holding the hands of my three year old niece, I begin to ponder: How do we move from fear to bravery?

And while I’m no expert at this (and am definitely a work in progress), I’ve been noticing lately that when I remember the power that lies within me, the power of my spirit, this helps me feel strong enough to begin to face my fears.

As my various fears and concerns arise I begin to remind myself that:

I am filled with the power of spirit.

I am powerful.

I am strong.

I am well able.

I am powerful and powerful beings of light are all around me and I never work alone.

I may repeat one or two of the above affirmations all day long, while driving my car, in the pause between events, and/or while doing my day to day activities.

As the various fears arise or as doubts enter my brain, I may repeat the following affirmation as well:

I am powerful.
I am powerful.

There is a place of great power that lies with in me.

I am one with unlimited power.
I am one with unlimited wisdom.
I am one with unlimited abundance.

I expand into my unlimited nature.

I am powerful.
I am powerful.
I am powerful.

As I work with these affirmations I notice, over time, that the fears start subsiding and a feeling of strength begins to arise in my body. My perceptions often change and I begin to perceive the obstacles before me differently.

Is this an instantaneous process? No.

While sometimes this process may work very quickly, it is more often a process that takes many, many repititions (at least for me!)

Have I mastered this art? No, not yet.

But this process has been really helpful for me in working with my fears and doubts as they arise.

I don’t know if this process will be helpful for you, but thought I’d share it here in case you too, have fears that arise and you are looking for constructive ways to work them.

While the fears may not vanish all at once, I have found that this process helps them to subside and helps me to find my bravery so that I can jump to the next step in the deep waters ahead.

~Hayley Mermelstein
\