You want to overcome anxiety and fear?

A few years ago I learnt how to overcome fear and anxiety, and that too in a hospital.  I happened to visit a parishioner who was admitted into the Holy Spirit Hospital in Mumbai, and on my way out I heard someone calling out to me. It happened to be a young man whose name simply eludes me.  He was excited; they were expecting their first child and asked if I would bless his wife.

To be honest I could not remember him from Adams. He chatted away excitedly like we were bosom buddies who had got off the phone fifteen minutes ago.  I stretched my mind as much as I could, trying to recall at break neck speed, how we knew each other. My mind kept racing back and forth, snatching at the bits of information he babbled, hoping to find that piece in the puzzle which would help me place him. Panic swept over me as we approached the maternity ward. I felt so ashamed I could not place him, while he seemed to know so much about me. I was like a computer screen that just hung; no cursor blinking!

As the door swung open I prepared myself for a quick exit, lest my pea sized memory betray me. As I stepped into the room, I realized that I had just jumped from the frying pan into the fire; the room was full of relatives. The wife was delighted to have me in the room. ‘Gosh’ I thought, she knows my name and I can’t even place her.  If you have ever been in a situation such as this, you would know that your best bet would be to bid your time talking generalities, till someone slips you that one bit of information that makes you go, ‘Aha, now I know who you are’. I had no such luck that day!