When You Don't Choose Love You Choose Fear

It says that Love and Fear can NOT be felt at exactly the same time as its impossible to do so. I disagree as I remember a time a time in my life that I felt both "love and fear" at the exact same time. I was 16 years old and holding my newborn baby girl in my arms. I looked deep in her eyes and felt real love for the very first time and felt intense fear like never before. The love between mother and child and the fear of being a new first time parent. If anyone would kindly take the time to help me understand I would gratly appreciate it!

Mindy, I agree with this remark. I appreciated much of the insight in this article, but felt that same thought surfacing as what you mentioned. It is because I love my daughters so much, so deeply, that fear about their future, their safety when they're away from me, etc., seems so intense at times. I am not sure what to do with that dichotomy!

This is a great example of both emotions at the same time

I think what you felt was anxiety, which we can experience when we love.

Some very interesting responses, especially in regard to parenting. As a mother who is now a grandmother, I see the fear of doing the wrong thing for our children as something we can let go of because no matter what we do, we cannot control everything in the world (or much of anything, really) and worrying about the future is a waste of our energy. This is where self-love comes in. Allowing love to replace the fear of doing the wrong thing is letting go of the need to control the world around us, and trusting that LOVE will guide us. Perhaps this is a spiritual or cosmic idea, not a concept that the human mind can willingly accept. FEAR needs to control outcomes. LOVE wants to allow what IS, in each moment as it arrives. FEAR is of the mind, LOVE is of the soul, the Higher Self. After all, THIS moment is the only time we have. Be HERE NOW, and you will find that LOVE overcomes FEAR.