Sometimes people present themselves in such a menacing manner we buy into the hype, believing that they have the ability to do us harm, to diminish or punish us. So we crawl away, hoping they do not discover us. They become the boogeyman in our closet. Yet when we have the courage to turn on the light, we find there is nothing there. They are just empty vessels making noise and sucking up oxygen! The next time you see a growling person, check and see if there is teeth in the gums before you take flight! Don’t be surprised if they run when you choose to growl back!
The only thing we have to fear is fear itself–nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance.
FRANKLIN DELANO ROOSEVELT,
First Inaugural Address, Mar. 4, 1933