The Wall

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“What a dear old wall that is that runs along by the river there! I never pass it without feeling better for the sight of it. Such a mellow, bright, sweet old wall; what a charming picture it would make, with the lichen creeping here, and the moss growing there, a shy young vine peeping over the top at this spot, to see what is going on upon the busy river, and the sober old ivy clustering a little farther down! There are fifty shades and tints and hues in every ten yards of that old wall. . . . It looks so peaceful and so quiet, and it is such a dear old place to ramble round in the early morning before many people are about.” Jerome K. Jerome, “Three Men In A Boat (To Say Nothing of the Dog)” Ch. 6 (1889)

Primed For Fear

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Once we develop the habit of living in fear, it will not matter how good things get. 
"You will be frightened out of your wits, not only by real, but by fancied dangers, and will be tossed for ever on the sea of illusion. What benefit will it be to 
'Have threaded all the towns of Argolis,
A fugitive through midmost press of foes?'
For peace itself will furnish further apprehension. Even in the midst of safety you will have no confidence if your mind has once been given a shock; once it has acquired the habit of blind panic, it is incapable of providing even for its own safety. For it does not avoid danger, but runs away. Yet we are more exposed to danger when we turn our backs." (Seneca, 104)
If we train our mind to worry, then we train ourselves to live in misery. We are primed for fear.

The solution is to re-train in order to thrive when good fortune comes. Training takes work, that's why it's called "confidence building." We need to take every action, every thought captive and use them as building blocks for a secure, safe place. 

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