To keep oneself safe does not mean to bury oneself. – Seneca
This particular snake (a variety of northern brownsnake) is only dangerous to worms and bugs. Knowledge can help keep you safer than simply burying yourself.
What does that mean?
Even dare-devils have a need to feel safe. We all have that need. We each might express it in a different manner, but we all have it. But is hiding the proper way to go about feeling safe?
The quote says that burying yourself (figuratively or literally) isn’t the best approach. Becoming a hermit, or at least acting like one, is likely to make more problems than it solves.
At some point, you have to do something in public, then what? Can you be a hermit and still go grocery shopping, especially if you are a hermit because you are trying to be safe?
There is a contradiction there, in my opinion. Hiding or avoiding isn’t really the best strategy. It might be a useful tool, but I wouldn’t use it to the exclusion of all other methods.
Why is feeling safe important?
The big question is what do we need to have in order to feel safe? Each of us will answer that question differently, as humans are unique by design. Yet we have common needs and desires.
Where and when do you feel safe? That is also dependent on conditions. You might normally feel safest out in a field, but that might change if there was a lightning storm rolling in, right?
And if the storm was bringing a tornado with it, a storm cellar might feel safe, even to a person with mild claustrophobia. But by feeling safe, we can maintain a level head, and think and act in a more rational manner.
There is also the good feelings which come from feeling safe. If you can remember back to when you were young, you might even remember a time when a storm or a bad dream had you running to the safety of someone else, and how good it felt.
Where can I apply this in my life?
Consider times when you have felt safe, and the times when you have felt the opposite. How rational were your thoughts and actions when you didn’t feel safe, and how do they compare to when you did feel safe?
How many times have you tried to bury yourself, hiding, avoiding, or otherwise hiding from something which makes you feel unsafe? How well did that work out for you?
Sure, it may work for a short period of time, but eventually, you will need to do something that will require you to un-bury yourself. Then what? You’re right back into a situation which caused you to bury yourself in the first place.
So if burying yourself isn’t the solution, what is? I imagine it will depend on how severe the feeling is, and how real the threat is.
If you are worried about getting cooties because there’s someone icky in the room, the solution would be different than if you’re worried about snakes, and you are somewhere where snakes are very commonly encountered.
Getting honest with yourself would be the first step. Is it just something creepy, or is it something dangerous? Is it real, or is it in your head? Is it something you can manage, or is it something you can avoid?
If there are only snakes in the woods, but not in your yard, hiding in the house is probably more like burying yourself in an attempt to stay safe. By staying out of the woods, you can be relatively assured of staying safe.
If you are afraid of being hurt, yet again, by caring for someone, refusing to care and driving everyone away is burying your heart in an attempt to stay safe. You may need to work your way back into relationships, and be protective, but burying yourself will hurt you in other ways, right?
Every situation will be different, so you will have to give some thought to what might be the proper response for you and your situation. You will have to figure out how real the risk is, as well as the level of safety.
Being around poisonous snakes can be fatal. But you can also become safe (or safer) by learning about them. Where do they live, and how can you avoid them? If you learn and practice these things, you can be as safe as if you were buried in your house.
Life has risks. Nothing is perfectly safe. Even a hole in the ground can be unsafe, if not done correctly. Learn. Practice. Use good judgement. And, most importantly, enjoy your life.
From: Twitter, @PhiloQuotes
confirmed at : http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/l/luciusanna155033.html
Photo by Tony Alter
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