June 3, 2016: Del Rio News-Herald * OPINION * Letter to the Editor * Graduates: Face your fears and flourish

Letter to the Editor,

Graduates: Face your fears and flourish 

Criticism; no one enjoys hearing that their creative work has issues or is just plain bad.

This is where pride and fear enter in.

Fear and pride are the ultimate inspiration killers.

Usually, when you’re afraid of making a fool of yourself, you’re preparing to do something meaningful and important.

What will people think of you?

What will you think of yourself?

Then, you have to make a decision: to do this important and meaningful thing or not to do it.

That is the question.

To choose ‘not to do it’ is the easy choice and a cop out, and it has a definitive outcome: nothing.

If, per chance, you make the ‘do it’ decision, there are two possible outcomes: failure or success.

Facing your fears and putting aside your pride equals major life changing moments.

Yes, you can be rest assured that there will be criticism and that there will be failures, and neither of these are particularly pleasant life experiences.

But you must not let this reality deter you, because you are utilizing your God-given gifts to fulfill your life's purpose.

God has given you a talent; you cannot and should not hide it under a bushel basket.

Pride and fear will sit on that bushel basket until you lift it up and let your world shine with that little light of yours which no one else can illuminate like you.

Everyone has a God-given talent.

If you are afraid of being criticized, then you will probably do nothing.

Whether you do nothing or whether you do something: You still will be criticized.

There is no mystery there.

The only thing remaining is whether you have the courage to learn from it and rise above it, or crawl back under the seemingly comfortable confines of your cocoon which instead of cradling you, it crushes your spirit and stifles your creativity.

When you nourish your God-given talent, you will inevitably find that your fears will fade and your talent will flourish.

Marian Casillas, Ed.D.