I would fail less
Or more
I would never fail
For fear of trying
I would fail
For reaching further
Than I could grasp
But why would I reach there
If reaching seemed no great risk
For what is risk but a measure of fear
And of what value would be
Anything that I grasped
Unburdened by fear
Triumph would lose the edge
Of conquering fear
Fear is the boundary
I am always extending
It is the voice
Guiding my way
To my next triumph
Or my next failure
But that is the nature
Of challenge
Is there challenge
Without fear?
Gansu Province, The People’s Republic of China
Taken during travels, 1998
In 1998 I bicycled the width of China, 6,000 kilometers (3,800 miles) in a bit over 6 months. About half that distance crossing desert, and 2,000 kilometers of that riding solo, beginning with this 300 kilometer (200 mile) stretch of nothingness separating the desert towns of Liuyuanzhen and Hami. Two days of bicycling without water access or shelter, but for what I carried with me.
Thanks to the Daily Prompt for Fearless Fantasies, which entirely inspired this post.