A Child Called Fear

A Child Called Fear

Once upon a time in a far away kingdom called Hatred there lived a child called Fear. Fear's father was called Feel Nothing and her mother was called See Nothing.

Now, Feel Nothing and See Nothing spent all their time creating a lovely Void for Fear to live in. They sincerely believed that if Fear lived in a Void, where no feeling or seeing was present, the child would turn out to be a good citizen of Hatred and, more importantly, would bring them great pride and pleasure.

Fear knew that Hatred was not a very good place and that Void wasn't the best atmosphere to live in. No matter how hard she tried, Fear's parents were never pleased with her. They told her she was ungrateful, stupid, unwanted and a disgrace to her family and all the citizens of Hatred.

Fear wanted very much to run away, but she didn't know that there were places to go where things were different. After all, her parents had told her that the neighboring kingdom called Perfect Love casts out fear. She surmised that if she went there, they would just make her leave. Now, Perfect Love was quite a distance from Hatred. Finding a way to get there, even if they welcomed her, would be a real problem.

Fear's father, Feel Nothing, tried very hard to teach her all his ways of living. He taught her how to make her heart like stone and how to close her mind and numb her spirit. She learned these things well, but not as well as he wanted.

See Nothing, Fear's mother, tried not to see Fear at all and she disliked having to acknowledge her as her daughter. When others were around, See Nothing ignored Fear completely. When they were alone together, See Nothing tried to teach her daughter how to blind herself to her surroundings so that all things were invisible and nothing mattered except her inability to see.

Fear tried and tried but no matter how hard she tried to do and be as her parents desired, she still could feel and she still could see. She felt like a complete failure. Not wanting to disappoint her parents longer than necessary, Fear decided to pack her few possessions and run away from Hatred and the Void her parents had worked so hard to create for her.

Fear had inherited a few possessions from a relative she no longer remembered, a relative who had died shortly after Fear was born. The possessions were Belief, Desire and Courage. Knowing that the way out of the Kingdom of Hatred would be treacherous, Fear traveled slowly and cautiously using these possessions.

After growing very weary and getting lost many times along the way, Fear finally reached the outskirts of Perfect Love. Those who lived there saw her coming and percieved that she was faltering as she approached their kingdom. But, because they were true citizens of the Kingdom Of Perfect Love, they ran out to greet her and assured her that she was very welcome.

Upon entering their kingdom, Fear was transformed. Suddenly she was filled with unaccustomed, but genuine, feelings. She could see clearly and after learning all their ways, Fear was given a new name and made a citizen of her new kingdom. Her new name was Bravery and she helped to create an atmosphere of compassion to replace the Void that had been her home when she lived in the Kingdom Of Hatred.

The End