growth over comfort

(because fear isn't always holding a stop sign)

Stay afraid, but do it anyway. What’s important is the action. You don’t have to wait to be confident. Just do it and eventually the confidence will follow.

—Carrie Fisher—

One of the best compliments I’ve ever gotten is this: “The thing about you is that even when you’re absolutely terrified, you still do what you say you’re going to do. You face things head-on.”

From the time I was little, I’ve approached life with a ‘How hard could it be?’ sort of headspace. I think about the few times my mom took me and my siblings to a fast food restaurant, and I’d go out to the play area, introducing myself to as many other kids as possible.

I wanted to make friends RIGHT NOW. And I did, for the time we were there. When we’d return to the same play area, I’d introduce myself once again to a new audience.

As I grew up, I continued to put myself into situations I was told were scary or impossible. And while things didn’t always go the way I hoped they would, I kept trying. I didn’t quit.

Yet, the older I get, the more I know. The more I have to lose.

The more I have hesitated. Not because I’m afraid of the thing I’m doing, but rather what might happen *if* I do it. If I fail. If I succeed.

Photo by Joshua Hoehne on Unsplash

My body feels tingly, and my brain is unable to focus when I’m afraid.

Part of me shuts down enough to slow my reaction or to stop it completely. It’s protective, but also a pain. While there are moments when fear is doing its job, when I just need to answer an email that’s been sitting in my inbox for a while…I wonder why fear works the overtime.

When I feel this moment, I try to slow down and feel the discomfort. I find where it lives in my body, and I quiet my mind for a bit. I don’t try to chase it, rather I try to locate it, feel it, and see what happens.

Slow down. I am not being chased by a bear. (And if I am, okay, speed up.)

But more often, I am just uncomfortable because I’m meeting something that I’m predicting to have a certain outcome. But I *don’t* know that’s true. Sure, things could go horribly. And they could also go well. Even more than well

In any case, the other side of discomfort and hesitation might be growth. I’m doing something new and I’m finding out if I like it, if I want to do it again, if it’s actually dangerous, etc.

If I just let fear stop me, turn me around, and lead me away, I might miss out.

Another $%&@ing growth opportunity.

I don’t know how your body responds, but I encourage you to consider what your life might look like if you prioritized growth over comfort. In that conversation, in that action, in that community.

What might happen if you invited in discomfort as a sign to lean in a bit more? What might you learn if you allowed fear to be there, even in the tightness? What could you do if you met the discomfort, only to find out it wasn’t as bad as you expected?

This doesn’t work in all scenarios, sure.

And being afraid is no fun at all.

But you can face it, learn from it, and find what’s on the other side.

Maybe even make new friends, too.

In love and magick,

Irisanya Moon

Classes & Events

May 1: Applications are open for Devoted to Her, Devoted to Self, my yearlong priestess/priestex training in love that starts in August 2025. Stay tuned…

May 10: We are the Granddaughters (Mother’s Market) - Shady Oak Barrel House - Santa Rosa, CA - FREE admission

June 21 & 22: Pearl Pentacle Weekend Immersion - Santa Rosa, CA - with me, Sequoia, and AManita.

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