Your Fears See a Cliff

She stood at the edge of the cliff, arms wide open, inviting the breeze to hold her. Peering at the stunning panoramic view in front of her, a sheer drop-off at her feet, she whispered to the wind, “I’m afraid.”

She took a deep breath, then dropped her arms and looked at her feet. “I am afraid to change, I am afraid to let go, I am afraid of freedom.” She closed her eyes and thought about the feeling of freedom. It wasn’t for her; it was a dream, a goal she told herself she would never achieve. 

She turned to walk away from the cliff’s edge and was startled by an angel standing behind her. 

“It is that easy to give up,” the angel said lovingly but with brutal honesty.

She froze. Her arm lifted, and she pointed at the cliff’s edge. “I don’t know where I would even go from here. There is a cliff!” 

“Love,” the angel's words spoke deeply to her heart, “you allow yourself to dream, yet you do not allow space for miracles. Your fears see a cliff. What does your heart see?” 

She took a deep breath and cleared her throat. “Ok,” she thought to herself as she turned back to face the cliff, diving into her heart. A majestically colorful hot air balloon rose up from the valley and arrived at the cliffside. It was adorned with beautiful tapestries on all sides. The basket was handwoven from the silkiest straw. 

Afraid to step toward the balloon, she watched as it disappeared with a poof, leaving a cloud like a burst of powder in the air. She stood with her mouth wide open, picturing herself plummeting to her death if she had stepped on to the “death contraption.” 

The angel walked up to stand beside her. “You are so afraid of moving forward that you fear you would die?” 

She closed her eyes and ever so slightly nodded in agreement. 

“What if the path forward just hasn’t been written yet?” the angel asked. 

She opened her eyes and looked curiously at the angel, who had already taken two steps ahead of her, one step off the edge of the cliff. “Wha,” she stuttered, “what do you mean?” 

The angel took another step, and the ground revealed itself beneath its feet.