I need to be honest, not alarmist. We live in a fearful time, a bitterly divided country facing frightening changes in our planet. I’d have to be a turtle not to feel or notice it.

But I would be worse than that if I had continued to let fear govern and shadow my life. Life is too precious for that; fear came close to doing me in.

I will always have fear inside me; it was built into my soul. But it gets smaller and less powerful all the time and no longer keeps me from living the life I want.

Here is one post about trying to beat fear down in a challenging world.

My choices are to accept fear as a part of our lives or to be devoured and crippled by it. I am preparing for fear this year, as I have in the past. And I have a wonderful new mantra and motto: I Have A Right To Be Happy.

I’ve tried many things in my lifelong pursuit of a fearless life, or at least one without morning panicking or shivering when I read or see the news.

I’ve had hypnosis, talking therapy, valium, psychics, shamans and seers. I am officially diagnosed (extreme anxiety) as being mentally ill and have been studying and experimenting with what I call Fear Blockers for at least 60 years.

I am always healing, and sometimes, I feel normal and sane. It’s a strange but uplifting feeling. I know now that I can be happy, inspiring me to work harder and be more challenged to improve.

As some of you know, I don’t preach or tell others what to do, and I am not a therapist or psychologist. I share what I have learned and what works for me. Take or leave it; some part of it may work for you. That’s the hope.

There are a whole lot of anxious people in our country right now. I see and feel this but will not let it dominate my life, emotions, faith, and hope.

Here are my primary fear blockers, things that have worked for me. I choose to learn how to love life and acknowledge its many beautiful and excellent parts. I can get stuck in the muck or live in the light.

My choice is not to bow to a presidential candidate, not the media, not trolls and grievances on social media, or people whose spirit is eroded by fear and worry.

When people try to take my happiness away, they are also attacking my dignity and freedom. Some of my ideas:

– Radical acceptance. Radical acceptance can be defined as the ability to accept situations that are outside my control without judging them or letting them define me. This has dramatically reduced the suffering that they cause. So has my motto. This morning, I woke up in panic as I often do, and I said directly to the fear: “I have the right to be happy. Go away.”

It worked. Miracles do happen. Change is possible. Hope is eternal.

-Extreme anxiety is not a natural human condition but a learned and acquired one. I got help, and help helped me learn how to live a beautiful life.

-I reject self-pity. Billions of people on this planet have it so much worse than I do; many live in hunger, persecution, sickness, and without freedom or hope.

I have the right to be happy, but not to forget that I am also one of the world’s most fortunate people, as are almost everyone I know, and for all our turmoil, conflict, and suffering.

The past doesn’t matter; the future is not knowable. Now is where I belong and where I live.

 

-When frightened, I go inward, not outside, for relief, balance, and grounding. No one can take that from me.

If I am not secure and hopeful, the fear will nibble away at me, a biological rate eating at my spirit.

I step outside myself – go somewhere, see someone, and do something outside my routine. I step out of myself and into the world.

If I succumb to self-pity and complaint, I’ll become someone I can’t accept or respect.

-When I feel fear, I do some good. Doing good is an anxiety killer; doing good feels good, just as being angry and resentful feels awful. I’m not joining the Armies of the miserable, left or right.

. Millions now feel hurt, fearful, and hope for something better. I believe that is coming. Doing good has sustained, grounded, and uplifted me for years now.

It is a powerful healing element in my life. Again and again, it keeps me from falling into the abyss of fury, resentment, and self-pity. I cherish the Army of Good; I want to be one for the rest of my life.

-I reject grievance and judgment. I do not speak poorly of my life. I do not presume to tell other people what to do or to mind their business while hiding behind my computer.

I let go of hurts and rejections, even of cruelty. Letting go of life is as important to me as living it. I am responsible for my life, I blame mo one for what has happened to me.

 

-Animals are one of the most potent medicines in my long experience with fear.

At every juncture, a dog, a donkey, a cat, and even some fish have lifted me, distracted me from fear, calmed me, taught me how to live in peace and simplicity, and got me outside myself.

The thing I love most about my dogs is their hopefulness. They feel hope daily – for walks, treats, work, and attention. Those things all work for me as well; they suck fear up like a straw-sucking soda. The thing I love about Zip is his independence and big heart.

–Fear and media. I was a journalist for much of my life, and I respect journalism and depend on it. I also see sadly that it has been corrupted by corporatism, which puts profits above any other ethic or purpose.

Like him or not, the media’s coverage of Donald Trump for profit has been its lowest point in modern history.

I know what the news is; it is not in charge of my emotions, nor can I trust it any longer to tell the whole truth.

The minute Wall Street began buying newspapers and TV stations, the soul and heart of journalism began to die. It is now a pathetic echo of its former, often glorious self. Small wonder fewer and fewer people respect it or listen to it. I don’t look there for truth; I look inside of me.

-Fear and politics. I do not permit political, political, or label to govern my life or emotions.

I won’t join that fray, not last time, not this time. The people who do that are miserable, angry, and resentful. That is not who I wish to be, but sadly, that is what politics is for now. Politics and labels do not define me; I get to do that defining, for better or worse.

Hatred has always been a part of the human condition. So is love and compassion. It’s up to me and every other human. I fully embrace the once-strange idea that we will soon enter a Spiritual Coming because it feels better and is better.

-A spiritual life. The main questions for my spiritual direction are: Who am I? Where did I come from? Where am I going? What does prayer mean to me? What do I wish to be? Is there a God for me? How does my notion of God speak to me? Where do I belong in this spiritual realm?

-More than anything, spirituality – far beyond its deeply religious roots – has changed me and taught me how to live in peace and harmony, find love, and be gentler and kinder. Spirituality has taught me to respect fear and accept it, live beyond it with dignity and fulfillment, and a heart for helping others.

 

-I am not one of the most essential things in the world; I am just another person trying to make his way with grace. I am not important enough to feel sorry for myself. I can learn to feel empathy instead.

What does it mean to be happy? It means I have a purpose in life, not to hurt people or abandon them to poverty, sickness, and need. It means I can be what I call a good parasite. I take my happiness from love, writing, pictures, and the need to help people who are vulnerable.

Spiritual guidance is about the basic search for meaning. I allow all of the daily experiences of life, good or bad, joy, loneliness, fear, anxiety, insecurity, uncertainty, doubt, ignorance, the need for affection and support, and the long, long cry for love – to be recognized as the core part of the spiritual quest; it’s the heart.

I believe that pain and fear are essential for growing and learning.

I am grateful for this challenge and difficulty and for the journey on the long walk of humanity, happiness, and faith.

I have the right to be happy. My spiritual work has given me a path to happiness, not a perfect life, but a rich life lived in hope and meaning, not in the fear and brokeness of other people.