Blogophobia

On Friday, I did not blog. Instead, I did something crazy- I tried out for a part in a musical.
This may not seem like crazy behavior except for the fact that I am terrified of singing in public. As long as I am in a group, I'm fine but singing alone is scary. In fact, the only things that are more terrifying are playing an instrument in public and anthrax.
The familiar butterflies and trepidation as I considered this bold act got me thinking about fears in general. I used to be afraid of far more things like swimming under water and the Wicked Witch of the west. Maybe those two are connected....
Anyway, I think everyone has irrational fears. For my son Elijah, his list currently includes ants and large dogs- having already conquered his mortal fear of balloons. Gabriel is scared of people in costumes, the mean diesel engine with the pincher on Thomas and the Magic Railroad and lambs. Marc will probably deny this, but I am convinced that he has a fear of breakfast. My evidence is thus: 1. Marc never eats breakfast. 2. If we ever have breakfast foods for dinner, Marc complains and finds alternative foods to eat.
I've also noticed fears in the community. Many young men seem to fear belts as evidenced by the issues they seem to have with keeping their pants on, or maybe they have a form of claustrophobia in which they fear tight clothing instead of tight spaces. Drivers in the area have a fear of using their blinkers and appropriately using turn lanes. The governments of Cleveland and the surrounding suburbs fear speeds in excess of 25 mph even on four lane business-zoned roads.
So- what should we do about our fears? I think we have two options. The first is to keep being afraid but to learn the latin name for your fear so you don't seem so ridiculous. "I have ovinophobia" sounds much better than "I am afraid of sheep". The second option is to face your fear and cross it off your list. The only way out is through. This thinking is what led me to spend a week talking myself into auditioning for the This Is Kirtland musical. Not only did I get to face my fear by singing solo for my audition, but I am happy to report that I will be facing my fear repeatedly since they assigned me the role of Thankful Pratt in which I must speak and sometimes sing alone. I am hoping to be able to cross it off my list of fears by the end of the production. Oh, and in honor of facing fears, we will be having breakfast for dinner.

Related Information
Here is a list of the latin names for the fears mentioned in this blog:
sonophobia- fear of singing
aquaphobia- fear of swimming
lamiaphobia- fear of witches
formicaphobia- fear of ants
caniphobia- fear of dogs
balloonophobia- sorry no latin for balloons
sumptuphobia- fear of costumes
siderodromophobia- fear of trains
ientaculumophobia- fear of breakfast

This is Kirtland! is free with performances running from July 1st- 17th. Detailed information can be found here:
http://thisiskirt.squarespace.com/