Faith vs Fear

Faith challenged Fear to a duel the other day.

If you’d asked me before, I’d have said “There’s no way

That Faith will win this; she’s simply not as strong,

Nor does she have the power that Fear’s had all along”.

Yet a voice inside me implied I was wrong,

It advised that I tried to put my doubts to one side,

So I did as it said and I opened my eyes.

What I saw threw me at first because, as usual, I expected the worst.

Fear’s weapon of choice is this ugly mouth,

Which relentlessly spouts criticism and shouts:

“YOU CAN’T BEAT ME!” thereby drowning out

Any words of love, encouragement and hope.

(It’s no wonder Faith normally can’t cope.)

Today is different though, for unlike before,

These words don’t appear to be reaching her core,

And the shameful stream of negativity simply washes right over her, much to my awe.

Fear continues to fight with all of his might,

But on this occasion, a victory is not in his sight.

In a desperate last attempt,

His mouth spits with contempt,

Then yells “Drink!” You know you want to”, a sly grin forming, then fading - he’s spent.

Faith, on the other hand, remains grounded and calm,

As she informs Fear that his words no longer cause harm:

“The feeling I have from rising above

Your criticism is better than any drink or drug”.

And with that, they both know

That she’s struck the final blow,

And they leave me alone to marvel at how we can grow.

Milly D. is a member of AA and a very talented blogger and poet currently living in Germany. You can check out her work on this blog soon or her personal blog, www.rapsaboutrecovery.wordpress.com.