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INNER PEACE Unexpected courage turns fear to peace Comment By Janai 'Grandma Boom' Mestrovich DailyTidings.com By Janai 'Grandma Boom' Mestrovich Posted May. 2, 2015 at 12:01 AM By Janai 'Grandma Boom' Mestrovich Posted May. 2, 2015 at 12:01 AM Share your Inner Peace --> The Ashland Daily Tidings invites residents of the Rogue Valley to submit articles on all aspects of inner peace, including intuition, inner guidance, mind t... » Read more X Share your Inner Peace The Ashland Daily Tidings invites residents of the Rogue Valley to submit articles on all aspects of inner peace, including intuition, inner guidance, mind training, courage, fearlessness, forgiveness of self or others, honesty, gentleness, humor, open mindedness, friendship, tolerance, trust, faith, kindness, gratitude, overcoming and/or accepting life’s challenges of addictions, loss, grief, pain, awareness of presence and more. Send 600- to 700-word articles to Sally McKirgan, [email protected] . » Social News In 1961 on a hot Kansas day during my 11th summer I was babysitting my sister, Karen, and her friend, Debbie, both 5 years old. The day was humid so it seemed best to get out of the non-air-conditioned house. I prepared a picnic basket for a fun outing in the woods. After finding a shady, cool spot under a tree near the creek, we had fun visiting and being silly. Just when we were finished, one of the Gerding's farm's horned bulls appeared on the scene. He dug his hoofs in and flared his nostrils. No one was within yelling distance to help us. With two children in my care, I had to think fast. My body was shaking and my stomach formed a tight knot. Then something seemed to come over me ... or through me. My fear vanished, seemingly into thin air. I swooped Karen and Debbie behind a tree. “STAY RIGHT HERE. Don't move, no matter what!” They were scared. “OK,” they whispered. They knew by my voice it was a serious situation. Keeping his eyes on me, the bull drew closer. I could hear his breath in the stillness of the moment. “Stay behind the tree.” I reiterated to the girls. The only thing that came to mind was what I had seen in the movies. I grabbed the tablecloth I'd brought for us to sit on — it happened to be red — and shouted with great gusto, “Toro! Toro!” I moved myself away from where the girls were hiding and toward some trees. I hoped the bull would come after the red cloth. The bull did a couple stomps with a front hoof. Fear resurfaced in my stomach but determination to protect the girls won out. I started to move quickly again, not having an ounce of energy to waste on fear. I moved farther away from the girls, repeating, “Toro! Toro!” and waving my red cloth, and the bull followed. I've no idea where I got that kind of courage. I distinctly remember noticing the bull's nostrils flaring at higher intensity. At that point I knew it was essential to move even faster. He stepped up his speed, too. Running in zig zags to confuse him until I reached a grove where the trees were thicker; I ran behind some tall brush and threw the red cloth in a different direction as hard as I could. I hid, holding my breath, concerned about not making the slightest sound in case he would hear me. As he approached the red cloth he made a breathy, huffy sound. I peeked slightly around the tree, moving ever so slowly. I glanced back and saw that the girls were still hidden and being quiet. Thank goodness they didn't make any noise. That was nothing short of a miracle for two little girls who both liked to talk! Soon the bull moseyed over to another area. I waited in silence. When I saw it was safe to move, I quietly went back to the girls. We gathered our things quickly and headed home with huge sighs of relief. I complimented them for being quiet and staying hidden. It was an almost unbelievable experience for an 11-year-old. Had I really just risked myself to keep my sister and her friend from being harmed? It was hard to grasp. Somehow, it all worked and I was amazed. The fact that I had just saved them from harm welled up inside me. A wave of inner peace soared through my being, soothing me in thought and body. Perhaps it was the aftershock of turning fear into courage. Or maybe the sense of saving others from harm created a contentment and peace reaped from going beyond my normal life circumstances. Inner peace was the positive outcome that has remained with me. The feeling of peace still arises when fear knocks on my door and I know that courage is my answer. Janai Mestrovich, aka Grandma Boom, lives in Ashland and is an international speaker. Her children's books and "The Grandma Boom Chronicles ... More Alive at 65" are available at Bloomsbury, Renaissance Rose and Amazon.com and www.grandmaboom.com.   By Janai 'Grandma Boom' Mestrovich DailyTidings.com By Janai 'Grandma Boom' Mestrovich Posted May. 2, 2015 at 12:01 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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