Tuesday, October 20, 2020

Facets of Fear: Word Counters

Word Counters, a multiblogger writing challenge | Developed, run by and graphic property of www.BakingInATornado.com | #MyGraphics

Counting my words again. 

Today my fellow Word Counters and I are sharing our monthly group post. Each month one group member picks a number between 12 and 74. All participating bloggers are then challenged to write something (or a few somethings, as the case may be) using that exact number of words. Today we all share what we came up with.




 The October number is 68. 
It was chosen by Mimi of Messymimi's Meanderings.

As I've been doing in these Word Counters posts, I've chosen a theme and am using my word count multiple times in keeping with the theme. This month I've chosen the theme Facets of Fear.

~ I'm writing about fear today, it is October after all. This month is associated with fear, thanks in part to Jason Voorhees, Michael Myers, and Chucky (to name a few). Not to mention the fact that I'll never hear a chainsaw without the hair on the back of my neck standing up. But fear isn't just for October, there are many facets of fear in our everyday life.

~ Loss: this is probably one of the most painful fears we have. We all fear loss of many different types, from small and annoying to huge and devastating. I just bought my son renter's insurance, which is actually fear of loss of our belongings, a smaller loss in the scheme of things. The most powerful fear is the death of a loved one. Cancer sucks, by the way.

~ Change: also known as fear of the unknown. There is reassurance in the status quo. Many people are actively fearful of almost any change, find comfort in what we know, the routines that keep us organized, the way things work for us. Change can bring on anxiety, extreme anxiety for some. Anxiety is not fear, but is often a byproduct of it, making this fear a real threat.

~ Stagnation: just as change brings about anxiety, there are also many circumstances in which we fear being stuck in a rut. Same old, same old only takes us so far. We need to grow, to open ourselves to new experiences. Stagnation in a relationship can bring it to an end. 

And who wants to eat the same things every night? Variety is the spice of life, after all.


Shrimp and Scallop Bake, shellfish and broccoli bake together in this dish that assembles and bakes in ½ hour. Perfect for either a weeknight dinner or a special occasion. | Recipe developed by www.BakingInATornado.com | #recipe #dinner

Shrimp and Scallop Bake
Shrimp and Scallop Bake, shellfish and broccoli bake together in this dish that assembles and bakes in ½ hour. Perfect for either a weeknight dinner or a special occasion. | Recipe developed by www.BakingInATornado.com | #recipe #dinner


~ Scary movies: I'm convinced that scary movies are fear's version of fun. This is the kind of fear I started this post referring to. It's terror, but not real terror, not for more than a few minutes, anyway. We may very well jump out of our seats, scream out loud, so it's real fear, but it's immediately followed by a laugh, realization that it's all just make believe.

~ Real life creepy crawlies: lions and tigers and bears, nope (brave statement since I've never come face to face with them outside cage at the zoo). Spiders, now that'll do it for me. Not only will we scream, but we'll run (and if you're anything like me you run till you drop), and unlike the Hollywood version of fear, and we'll never follow it up with a laugh. 

~ Others: This fear makes me the saddest, and the angriest, because it's the basis for bigotry. We designate people to groups based on nothing but our own ignorance, on what makes them different from us: their religion or looks, or politics or sexual identity . . . We should only assign value (in terms of whether or not we want them in our lives) by their actions and their character. Period.

~ Ourselves: This is a destructive fear. It's self doubt, insecurity. Truth is, the vast majority of mothers I know have suffered from the paralyzing fear of doing the wrong thing, saying the wrong thing to our children, often resulting in overthinking the situation. It's the fear of being the cause of harm to those we love. If only we could all go back and reassure our past selves. 


Here are links to the other Word Counters posts:

Messymimi’s Meanderings 
On the Border 



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Shrimp and Scallop Bake
                                                                       ©www.BakingInATornado.com

Ingredients:
1 1/2# large shrimp, peeled and deveined
1# sea scallops
1 1/2 cups broccoli florets
1/4 cup olive oil
3 TBSP cooking sherry
1 TBSP lemon juice
1 tsp dried parsley
3 cloves minced garlic
salt and pepper to taste 

1/4 cup melted garlic and herb butter spread
1/4 cup grated parmesan
1/4 cup Italian seasoned breadcrumbs 
2/3 cup crushed Ritz crackers
 
sliced lemon for serving 

Directions:
*Pat the shrimp and scallops as dry as you can. Place in a large bowl with the broccoli.
*Whisk together the olive oil, sherry, lemon juice, parsley, minced garlic, salt, and pepper. Add to the bowl with the seafood and broccoli and stir to coat all of the ingredients.
*Grease a 9 X 13 baking dish. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
*Mix the seafood again, then distribute evenly into the prepared casserole dish.
*In the same large bowl, mix together the melted butter spread, parmesan, breadcrumbs, and cracker crumbs. Sprinkle on top of the fish and broccoli.
*Bake for 25 minutes or until the shrimp and scallops are cooked through. The shrimp will be pink and the scallops will be opague.
*Serve with slices of lemon.

13 comments:

  1. Ohmyword, yes!
    Fear drives us and stops us. Motivates us and paralyses us. I feel there is an element of fear in every decision. In every step. It walks alongside us throughout our lives. And we get to decide if it is a big, scary monster, or a little, annoying creep that simply won't leave us alone!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Exactly. It does have a purpose, and each step of the way we need to decide whether to listen to it or to fight it.

      Delete
  2. Fear is a safeguards us against stupidity but fails some of us.

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  3. Fear of failure is another big fear. It paralyzes us. It prevents us from even trying. But sometimes, fear is protective (which is why I never jumped out a window to fly like Superman as a child, like an unfortunate in my housing project tried. Or so my Mom told me. Maybe she was making that up. But I digress.) The trick is knowing when fear protects and when it holds us back. Alana ramblinwitham.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I agree. Sometimes it takes making some mistakes to see that clearly, but that's how we learn.

      Delete
  4. Great food for thought as well as a great recipe.

    And if i'm around, i'm willing to take that spider outdoors for you and set it out where it can do the job it was made to do, eat the nasty bugs we don't want.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. A lot of them are trying to come in now that it's getting cold out, maybe you could move in with me for a while?

      Delete
  5. A little fear is helpful, but I find I can't stop with that little bit and it starts taking over.

    ReplyDelete
  6. My fear is who I will or will not out live. At the great age of 75, I have outlived my parents, my only sibling and her husband and my husband. I cannot fathom outliving my children,. I pray to God I will not,. My biggest fear is my dog outliving me. Who will sweet talk to her, feed her, walk her and be with her all day every day. No one can but me. If I outlive her, who will love me and who will I spend my money on.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I hope you all have many, many more happy years together.

      Delete

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