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Fear Is False Evidence Appearing Real
On October 30, 1938, the night before Halloween, millions of radio listeners tuned in to a popular radio program, Mercury Theatre on the Air, aired on the CBS Radio network. This particular radio program often presented plays written and performed by a man named Orson Welles. And this night was to be no exception. The performance on this particular night was an adaptation of a science fiction novel called “The War of the Worlds”, a story about earth being invaded by Martians.
It was presented in a way that made the listeners believe that earth was really being invaded. There were constant interruptions for important news bulletins. One news bulletin reported that a “huge flaming object” had landed on a farm near Grovers Mill, New Jersey. Another reporter, one of the actors playing the part of a reporter, told of numerous huge, gray snake-like alien emerging out of the space ship so horrible in appearances that he could barely force himself to look.
People listening to the presentation were stunned. It seemed so real in how it was presented that a large number of listeners concluded that they were hearing an actual news account of a real invasion. People packed their cars with their things and took to the roads in such numbers as to create major traffic jams. Parents aroused sleeping children and hid in cellars, terrorized that they were going to die. Others loaded up their guns. Many people wrapped wet towels around their heads to ward off any poisonous Martian gases. Thousands called radio and police stations asking what should they do to protect themselves. When an actor sounding like President Roosevelt gave the message that it was a national alert, even the few skeptics, were now convinced.
There had been a brief explanation at the beginning of the program that this was just a play, but most people missed it. There was another brief explanation about 40 minutes into the program, but by now the fear level was so intense, they missed it again. The play had been written and performed to sound like a real news broadcast about an invasion from Mars. People allowed their fears to suck them into a nightmare world where fiction and fact became one.
We all have our fears. Sadly, we all have been, at one time or another, reduced to a degree of terror by our fears, just as that radio audience was reduced to terror by theirs. Franklin D. Roosevelt, the 32nd president of the United States, said “The only thing we need to fear is fear itself”. He was referring to the powerlessness that over comes us when our fears take over.
Here’s a little exercise. Let’s play “What if”. What would happen if your biggest fear came true? I guess we first need to acknowledge our fear. Then we need to name our fear. Then we need to pull it out from under the covers or out of the closet or out from under the bed so that the light of the sun, the light of day can shine on the fear. Then, we need to remember to breathe. Fear usually has us taking shallow breathes with our heart racing wildly as our body urges us to run as fast and as far as possible. This is called the “fight or flight” response where our adrenalin is pumping through our body to give us emergency energy to get us through to safety. What is the worst thing that could possibly happen? Could you live through it, could you survive? What could you learn from your fear? If your fear could speak, what would it say?
Some fears are valid. They help keep you safe. But others are tied to our need to be loved, our need to be approved of, accepted and included. Females are taught to be nice… to everyone ….. even someone who is hurting you or saying mean things about you. Face your fears. It will take the power out of the fear and reduce it to a manageable size. Then ask yourself …. is this worst thing that could possibly happen really going to happen, maybe not today, but maybe next week or next year? If it did, could you survive? Could you pick yourself up, brush yourself off and start all over again? If the answer is yes, you could survive, then maybe that big horrible scary fear isn’t all that big and scary after all.
Reclaim and celebrate your joy.