What to Teach?

Is fear needed to teach discipline?  This can be a tough question to answer.  But I think a better question to ask is “What shall we teach?”  Answer: Teach what is needed.  The answer to replace teaching fear is to teach preparation and aspiration.  Teach how to prepare for joy, happiness, love, hope, courage, and compassion. These are the reasons we should prepare ourselves for the obstacles that may come our way. To learn “anything,” we need to focus on “something.” If we focus on pain, we should expect pain, and our odds of receiving it are more likely. If we focus on aspirations for love, we should expect it, and we shall receive it.  The essence in these lessons comes in the communication of “how” and “when.”

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I got on a school bus a few years back one morning with my 6-year-old daughter to go on a class trip to a farm.  The teacher asked the kids to fasten their seatbelts to secure themselves.  This instruction was used as opposed to giving directions to secure their seat belts so they do not fall out of their seats and split their heads open. Teaching “how” to fear often inhibits chasing dreams and stops the natural flow of exploration. Teaching preparation for healthy dream chasing is a foundation for us to grow as a society.  Teaching fear does not allow us the opportunity to find a healthy dream to chase; rather, it pre-exposes us to the unhealthy roads to travel along. Chasing dreams is about doing what it takes, not being consumed about what it does not take.

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We cannot let fear and guilt get a hold of us. It is important to always carry a bag filled with integrity and reality.  Labor shall be about gratitude and feeling free.  If we want to love, we want to feel free.  It is no different than any other accomplishment.  We are going to need to make it a habit.