By Jagdesh Singh | OPINION |
If you’ve ever observed when a young toddler is playing, which is their life’s purpose, you’d notice that the child has no fear whatsoever on being harmed physically nor emotionally. This is because she is still learning the pattern that whenever she falls or trips, she would be in pain. And the fear of feeling the pain would slowly grow on her as she grows bigger.
But as she learns this pattern, she also learns that her mother is always there to save her from her fall, to protect her from anyone hurting her. She develops faith in her mother, saving her from falling, avoiding her from feeling pain. And so, you’d notice that some toddlers are fearless, full of faith that there’s always someone there to protect them from pain. Where there’s faith, there’s no fear.
As teenagers, you’d notice that they are reckless, wanting to push boundaries, always trying to discover their own voice, wanting to think for themselves, the world always at their feet. Many still have faith in their parents to help them navigate in life, but their faith in others, like their friends and comrades in the playground and classrooms are growing by the day. To them, their true friends will never betray them, never hurt them emotionally.
They become fearless, rebellious against the adults, discovering their identity in the process. I can’t remember the number of times I’ve cringed in my adult life remembering how foolish I was tempting life under the guise of being fearless. Nevertheless, I was fearless. Where there’s faith, there is no fear.
As a young adult, I remember being fearless was a lot harder than before. My faith towards those around me was still strong, especially of my parents and close friends, but faith in myself, my abilities was sky high. Equipped with all that is necessary for me to survive in this world, like an education, the dreams were limitless. There wasn’t anybody to answer to but myself, adventure and independence beckoned. I was fearless to see what my youth and my will could potentially lead me to. My faith shifted from the outward, the people around me, to the inward, to my self and my understanding of my abilities. Where there’s faith, there is no fear.
As a father and husband, with greying hair, I now have many that I’m fearful of. From death in itself, to the suffering of my loved ones, the fears are now of outward nature. I fear of losing those of whom I’m attached to, I fear of the unpredictable future, my faith in myself waning, more so of those around me. I fear of failure, of not fulfilling the needs and the wants of my family. I fear of society and what those relevant think of me. I am fearless no more. Where there is fear, there is no faith.
How I wish I was the toddler running off from the stairs into her faithful mother’s arms.
How I wish I was a teenager again, racing and competing with other teenagers, with the support of my faithful friends.
How I wish was the young graduate, working tirelessly into the late night, knowing so well I could depend on myself to faithfully deliver success.
Perhaps, as I learn from them, I would probably understand that I would need to have faith in myself, in the divine in me, to be the mother, the friend and the internal guide. That all that I fear of will remain if I don’t have faith.
Where there’s faith, there’s no fear.
Where there’s fear, there’s no faith.
Jagdesh Singh, a Kuala Lumpur-based executive with a US multinational company, is a father of three girls who are as opinionated as their mother
* This is the opinion of the writer, organisation or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Asia Samachar.
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