Scaredy Cat's Shark Attack...

I have three irrational fears… well... er... ah... uh...  those of you that know me well are aware that there are many others but these are the three I deem the most irrational… 

Don’t judge me. You don’t have to  live in my highly imaginative head.

Ok? So. 
They are:  
zombies, clowns & sharks...
but not necessarily in that order. 

This morning, at my library job, I found myself cataloging five of the most terrifying non-fiction books about sharks. Oh these books were amazing from an informational standpoint. They were just chocked full of colorful maps, text describing habitat, physical characteristics, eating habits, & life cycle & featuring glossy photos of real sharks… biting things. It was truly horrible. So horrible, I considered  pawning them off on a fellow cataloger citing the ghastly nightmares that are sure to plague me tonight & the brief thought that this might be grounds for a workman’s comp case based on PTSD.  Laugh if you want. I’m not kidding. 

Anyhoo… around the lunch table later I shared my irrational fear with some of my coworkers. We laughed at me. & I do mean ‘WE’. I do after all know that the likelihood of my being bitten by a shark is… well here are some facts:

• In 1996, toilets injured 43,000 Americans. Sharks injured 13.
• You have a one in 63 chance of dying from the flu and a one in 3,700,000 chance of being killed by a shark.
• You have a one in 218 chance of dying from a fall and a one in 3.7 million chance of being killed by a shark.
• 1n 1996, buckets and pails injured almost 11,000 Americans.  Sharks injured 13.
• In 1996, room fresheners injured 2,600 Americans.  Sharks injured 13.
• The U.S. averages 19 shark attacks a year.  Lightning kills about 41 people a year in coastal states alone.
• Since 1959, Florida has had nine shark attack fatalities.  Lightning fatalities = 459.
• Since 1959, California has had more shark attacks (89) than lightning fatalities (30).
• Since 1959, California has had more shark attacks (89) than lightning fatalities (30).
• For every human killed by a shark, humans kill two million sharks.
• Anyone who has swum in New Smyrna Beach, Florida (shark capital of the world) has likely been within 10 feet of a shark.
• Some sharks can live for a year without eating, surviving on the oil stored in their livers.

-Nat Geo WILD: http://newswatch.nationalgeographic.com/2011/11/22/nat-geo-wild-what-are-the-odds-some-surprising-shark-attack-stats/

Before I move on, I would just like to point out that this list is not reassuring really & opens up my mind to a lot of other things I hadn’t thought scary before such as: toilets, buckets, room fresheners & the fact that I took my two young boys to New Smyrna Beach one summer where they frolicked for a week in the ocean waves. Despite the fact that they survived the trip unscathed, I’m freaking out a little bit over the close proximity we inadvertently had to those sharp-toothed giants… I mean “WHAT IF  one of those guys were trolling around those waters to partake of their yearly feeding? Easy pickin’s people! EASY PICKIN’S!  

Ok. Ok. Ok. I digress.

After lunch, as I reluctantly settled back in at my desk to finish my shark book cataloging, my sweet fellow Cat >^..^< (yes this is what we call each other in library world), slipped me this message. 

“Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow, it empties today of its strength.” 

–Corrie ten Boom.

Aha… 

Isn’t this the way of fear? It traps us, paralyzes, binds us, bites us & ultimately keeps us from experiencing the beauty & adventure of the world around us. 

In Psalm 27, King David reminds us that we need not fear but should instead put our confidence in the Creator of all things:

The Lord is my light and my salvation;
Whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the defense of my life;
Whom shall I dread?
When evildoers came upon me to devour my flesh,
My adversaries and my enemies, they stumbled and fell.
Though a host encamp against me,
My heart will not fear;
Though war arise against me,
In spite of this I shall be confident.

One thing I have asked from the Lord, that I shall seek:
That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life,
To behold the beauty of the Lord
And to meditate in His temple.
For in the day of trouble He will conceal me in His tabernacle;
In the secret place of His tent He will hide me;
He will lift me up on a rock.
And now my head will be lifted up above my enemies around me,
And I will offer in His tent sacrifices with shouts of joy;
I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the Lord.

Hear, O Lord, when I cry with my voice,
And be gracious to me and answer me.
When You said, “Seek My face,” my heart said to You, “Your face, O Lord, I shall seek.” Do not hide Your face from me, Do not turn Your servant away in anger; You have been my help; Do not abandon me nor forsake me, O God of my salvation! For my father and my mother have forsaken me, But the Lord will take me up.

Teach me Your way, O Lord,
And lead me in a level path
Because of my foes.
Do not deliver me over to the desire of my adversaries,
For false witnesses have risen against me,
And such as breathe out violence.
I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord In the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; Be strong and let your heart take courage; Yes, wait for the Lord.

I love how my savior speaks to my fearfull soul & gives me the confidence to face my fears with courage.  I will NOT lose heart in the face of danger... toils... or snares... or shark attacks... 

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!