This conversation is the embrace we all need in moments of uncertainty. 

Sometimes we need the reminder that everything is ok, that even in moments of fear, transition or uncertainty, we are exactly where we need to be.

One of our elders used to say:

"With fear, with fear, walking and walking."

Even with fear, continue taking one step forward.

[Listen to the Episode 👇🏼]

Our life experience is valuable. Sometimes we forget this when fear arrives. We begin doubting ourselves, our path, or whether we are capable of handling what is in front of us. Yet our indigenous elders remind us that everything in our life is there with a purpose of love.

One elder would often say that all the love of this universe is with us. All of it.

Everything is in our favor. Even fear.

Many of us have been taught to think that fear is a sign to stop or an obstacle to overcome. We have a poor relationship to our experiences, and want to change everything by force.Our elders saw fear differently. They understood that fear is simply one of the many forces we encounter along the path. It is not necessarily an enemy, and it does not have to determine our direction.

One elder would often say, "Even fear kneels down before love."

That teaching has stayed with us for many years.

Love is a greater force than fear. Not sentimental love, but the deeper love that moves creation. The love that allows us to care, trust, and keep showing up even when we don't have all the answers. When we remember this, fear loses much of its power over us.

Inhabit the Present

The challenge is that uncertainty pulls us into the future. We begin imagining every possible outcome, replay scenarios in our minds, and try to solve problems that have not yet arrived. Before long, we find ourselves carrying a weight that was never ours to carry.

Our elders reminded us that there is a different way.

Rather than trying to control the entire journey, we can return to the step that is directly in front of us. Life becomes simpler when we bring our attention back to what is actually ours to do.

One Step at a time

The small steps may seem insignificant in the moment, but over time they become giant. 

As we do this something beautiful begins to happen:

• We become more conscious
• We begin observing ourselves instead of being completely carried away by our fears, reactions, and old patterns
• We start recognizing the stories we have repeated for years and the habits of thinking that have become deeply ingrained within us

These patterns do not disappear overnight. They have often been with us for a very long time. But prayer, awareness, and small steps have a way of transforming them. Little by little, we begin to transcend the cycles that once kept us trapped. 

Our elders taught that there is a greater intelligence moving through life. When we pray sincerely, our prayer is heard. When we place something in the hands of the Great Spirit, it is received.

The difficulty is not whether Spirit hears us. The difficulty is whether we trust enough to stop taking the problem back.

Free Yourself from Outcomes

One of the most liberating teachings our elders shared is that we are not responsible for the results. We spend so much of our lives worrying about outcomes.

Yet life rarely offers guarantees.

Instead, our responsibility is much simpler.

We pray.
We take the next step.
We act with integrity. 
And we allow the Great Spirit to take care of the rest.

Because if we have prayed sincerely, Spirit has already heard us.

✓ It already knows where we are being guided.
✓ It already knows what we need.
 ✓ It already knows what is best for us.

Our job is not to carry the entire future. Our job is simply to live today well.

And what seems impossible now may become the very thing that helps us grow into who we are meant to become. Perhaps that is why our elders encouraged us to keep walking, even with fear. Especially with fear. Because sometimes the next small step is all that is needed for an entirely new chapter of life to begin.

A SEED TO CARRY

If you find yourself in a season of uncertainty, try not to demand all the answers at once.

Return to the present, take the next step, and nourish simple practices that reconnect you with yourself: prayer, silence, gratitude, a walk.

Know that your prayer has been heard.
Life is moving, even when you cannot yet see where it is leading.

And remember: The Great Spirit knows where you are. The Great Spirit knows what you need.

Your part is simply to keep walking.

Related Posts:

• 14 Days Alone on a Mountain
• Make Peace with your Darkness
• The Creator is Not Far Away: Here's How to Feel It