Fear of the Future and Finding Goodness

Have you ever feared the future so much that you couldn’t imagine goodness on the road ahead?

I remember when Penny was little, when I couldn’t think about the future because it catapulted me into fear. The thought of high school graduation was terrifying. I couldn’t even set goals for her upcoming year, even though we were asked to do so constantly. I didn’t want her not to meet those goals, and then for me to feel like we had failed her or that she didn’t measure up.

I expected to need tissues on the day Penny finished high school. I expected heartfelt, sorrowful goodbyes to teachers and friends. I expected a sense of deep loss, and perhaps even dread about what lies ahead. For many kids with Down syndrome and other disabilities, high school graduation is complicated by the uncertain and ambivalent path towards the future.

But her graduation didn’t bring tears or fear. Instead, I felt a sense of wonder, and gratitude, and celebration.

There are four practices that have slowly moved me away from a place of fear and shaped my imagination about the future. I’m writing about all this in my newsletter on Thursday. To read more, subscribe here.

I’d love to hear from you. What do you fear about the future? Have you found practices that move you from a place of fear to a place of hope?

MORE WITH AMY JULIA:

RESOURCE: 10 Way to Move Toward a Good Future (especially for families affected by disability)Making Hard Decisions With Love, Not FearWhat Having a Baby with Down Syndrome Taught Me About Distraction, Fear, and Love

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