Now, I Choose Not To Fear

I feared being alone
until I learned to like myself.

I feared failure
until I realized that I only fail when I don't try.

I feared success
until I realized that I had to try in order to be happy with myself.

I feared people's opinions
until I learned that people would have opinions about me anyway.

I feared rejection
ntil I learned to have faith in myself.

I feared pain
until I learned that it's necessary for growth.

I feared the truth
until I saw the ugliness in lies.

I feared life
until I experienced its beauty.

I feared death
until I realized that it's not an end, but a beginning.

I feared my destiny,
until I realized that i had the power to change my life.

I feared hate
until I saw that it was nothing more than ignorance.

I feared love
until it touched my heart, making the darkness fade into endless sunny days.

I feared ridicule
until I learned how to laugh at myself.

I feared growing old
until I realized that I gained wisdom every day.

I feared the future
until I realized that life just kept getting better

I feared the past
until i realized it could no longer hurt me.

I feared the dark
until I saw the beauty of the starlight.

I feared the light
until I learned that the truth would give me the strength.

I feared change
until I saw that even the most beautiful butterfly had to undergo a metamorphosis before it could fly.

27 Amazing Miracles in Real Life

From simple everyday joys to amazing new leases on life, readers share their most poignant moments of joy.

The sunrise my father and I watched standing at the top of one of the Smoky Mountains.
—Marilyn M., Huntington, Indiana

Our son fell 40 feet off his barn roof onto cement and didn't break any bones.
—Ladonna S., George, Iowa

All the factors that came together to help me find the daughter I had given up for adoption.
—Sandy M., Soda Springs, Idaho

A bumblebee flying.
—Karen D., Inverness, Florida

My husband getting out of the Pentagon on 9/11.
—Patti G., Fort Bliss, Texas

The way my mother always knew I was coming home, even when I tried to surprise her. She would always have that extra baked potato in the oven.
—G. E. G., Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

Losing my wife and business and surviving bankruptcy all at once, without dying of stress.
—Jack K., Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

During a serious kidney stone attack at age 37, I went into a coma and saw a light at the end of a tunnel. I regained consciousness and lived. I am now 88 years old.
—Euphemia R., Arcadia, California

Understanding how and why my grandfather acted like he did, now that I have grandchildren of my own.
—Steve M., Sunapee, New Hampshire

Some would say that my actually getting married was a miracle.
—Don L., Sherman Oaks, California

The Grand Canyon.
—Kimberly V., Orrville, Ohio

I survived flying into a thunderstorm in a small airplane. It required more than my piloting skills. I was being watched over.
—Bill B., Versailles, Kentucky

The births of my children and grandchildren.
—MaryLou M., Ooltewah, Tennessee

The days are filled with miracles: a flower blooming, my heart beating, the purr of a cat, the Internet.
—Barbara F., Penfield, New York

I feel that someone turning his life around for the better is a miracle.
—Susan D., Stanford, Montana

Love for the unlovable.
—Mary C., Mount Vernon, Ohio

Forgiveness.
—Laura W., Aston, Pennsylvania

Our son died of a brain tumor at 17. On the second anniversary of his death, as I was driving to work, a double rainbow appeared in the clear sky. One end was on the road in front of us and the other at the cemetery where he was buried.
—Peggy H., Boone, North Carolina

Microwave ovens. Color TV. Finding someone who actually loves me for who I am.
—Steve R., Athens, Pennsylvania

Our country has gone from slavery to the election of an African American president.
—Colleen D., Bonner Springs, Kansas

Being able to have enough income to share with others less fortunate.
—Carol S., Islamorada, Florida

I was saved in a fire by the vision of my first-grade teacher telling me how to survive.
—Larry W., Pahokee, Florida

Hearts changed.
—Suzi E., Howell, Michigan

A father who wrote poems to his wife and loved her forever.
—Joanne L., Plymouth, Michigan

Surviving two cancers for almost ten years!
—Connie R., Denver, North Carolina

One I haven't witnessed is the Vikings winning a Super Bowl.
—Jann W., Maple Grove, Minnesota

The miracle of friendship.
—Regina W., Columbus, Ohio

* Text from Reader's Digest
** Photos from Google