Frozen By Fear

Earlier this week my partner Austin and I had the pleasure of being at the San Diego Zoo. As we walked around to visit with all of the animals we noticed something that seemed a bit odd. Where all of the other animals had large cages or enclosures around them, the giraffes only had a small wall that held them into their place. With such long legs and such great height, it was easy to see that these animals could simply jump over the wall if they ever chose to – so why didn’t they? We were both incredibly puzzled by this, so we asked. The answer…

 

Giraffes are afraid of their own height so they won’t attempt to step over anything if they can keep from it.

What does this mean?

 

These animals have every ability to walk out of the enclosure that holds them and explore the world around them, but they don’t. Not because they are captive by the enclosure itself, but because they are held captive by their fears.

 

Isn’t that like many of us? We put reasons we aren’t stepping out into a new environment on our current environment. But, the truth is, our current environment is a small wall. All circumstances can be rearranged if we desire them to be. The only thing that truly holds us back is our own fear.

 

Life is an experience! If you are happy in your current environment, enjoy it fully and completely. But, if you desire to explore new terrain, don’t allow fear to hold you back. Step over that wall and embrace what is on the other side!

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