A few days ago I was doing some family history research and came upon my grandfather’s Union Prayer Book, presented to him in 1928 on what must have been his bar mitzvah. At least the year 1928 works out appropriately for it to have been that occasion. Inscribed inside the front cover is a message from someone whose name has faded from the page . It reads, “Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass. It’s about learning to dance in the rain.” Again, the year was 1928– what a storm 1929 brought in the Great Depression.

Today is 2008. What a storm 2009 will surely bring. James Thurber said, “All men should strive to learn before they die, what they are running from, and to, and why.” Do you want to know the answers to these questions? Because part of learning to dance in the storm is to know what you want, what you are afraid of and most of all…why.

Roy Williams is an advertising guy that is much smarter than I am, which is why I take constant inspiration from him. Here are four common fears he identifies which inspired this article.

Fear of Decision. Overcome it by Knowledge of Purpose

“Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.” – Howard Thurman

Mark Twain said it more sharply: “I can teach anybody how to get what they want out of life. The problem is that I can’t find anybody who can tell me what they want.”

Fear of Struggle. Overcome it by Commitment

Most people think commitment is a consequence of passion. But it’s the other way around. Passion is a product of commitment. If your life is without passion, make a commitment.

“When I hear somebody sigh that life is hard, I am always tempted to ask, ‘Compared to what?’” – Sydney J. Harris

Fear of Failure. Overcome it by Laughter and a Sense of Wonder

“To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people just exist, that is all.” – Oscar Wilde

“Do not take life too seriously – you will never get out of it alive.” – Elbert Hubbard

“But why think about that when all the golden land’s ahead of you and all kinds of unforeseen events wait lurking to surprise you and make you glad you’re alive to see?” – Jack Kerouac

Fear of Death. Overcome it by Celebrating the Ordinary

“Don’t be afraid your life will end; be afraid that it will never begin.” – Grace Hansen

The question today is “will you dance in the storm of 2009?” Will you create passion, commitment, laughter, a sense of wonder and celebrate the ordinary? Do you want to learn to dance? Dancing is easy when you know your life’s purpose. Do you know yours?

So as I closed the Union Prayer Book of my grandfather, the brittle pages crumbling in my fingers from years of neglect, I realized something quite astonishing about that inscription. It was paraphrased from another source. “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble (storms.) But be of good cheer; (learn to dance in the rain,) for I have overcome the world.” You can read it too– in the sixteenth chapter of the Book of John.

Tomorrow is Christmas- a day of friends and family. Spend it well with those you love and care about. Happy Holidays.

Tags: commitment, death, fear, struggle

This entry was posted on Wednesday, December 24th, 2008 at 6:28 pm and is filed under Great Ideas, Highly Recommended, My Life on the MPv2 List. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.