The greatest risk in life is to risk nothing

Yesterday I visited a friend at her house and was struck by the words about risk that she had hanging on her living-room wall. As I read through the words I couldn't help crushing every sentence in my mind. Below I will write what was written on the wall hanging in bold letters and then write how I crushed every point in italics.

To laugh is to risk appearing the fool.
Well, so what, fools have a lot of fun and are very cheerful. I would rather appear like a fool than be serious all the time. I will laugh when ever I feel like.

To weep is to risk being called sentimental.
I see nothing wrong with being called sentimental. Weeping shows that I am not heartless and besides crying has a soothing effect that helps me to feel better.

To reach out to another is to risk involvement
Involvement is good, it makes my humanity come out. I want to reach out and get involved with others. No man is an island.

To expose feelings is to risk showing your true self.
I want to show my true self to the world, I want to be known for who I am, so I will expose my feelings. Have never been one for putting up appearances.

To place your ideas and your dreams before the crowd is to risk being called naive.
They can call me any adjective or name they want but that won't silence me, I will continue to have my voice and thoughts heard.

To hope is to risk despair
Without hope how would I be able to carry on with life. Without hope I might start thinking that life is not worth living, so I will continue hoping and if I despair later on it will be for a short time before I start hoping for something else again.

To try is to risk failure.
But then if I don't try how will I ever know if I can or can not do it? It is through trying that I learn to succeed.

To trust is to risk disappointment and feeling betrayed.
I would rather trust than be paranoid about everyone and everything. And when in love, trusting the one you love is a must otherwise the love will be incomplete.

To love is to risk not being loved in return.
It is better to have loved and not be loved in return than not to have loved at all. Besides love just happens whether we like it or not and as long as we are alive we can't run away from love.

To live is to risk dying
So would you rather not live just because you don't want to take risks? I choose to live and take all the risks that come with living.

There is no way you can live without taking risks. The greatest risk in life is to risk nothing. Of course, by not risking you can avoid suffering and sorrow, but you simply won't be able to learn, feel, change and grow, love and live if you don't take risks. Chained by your certitudes you forfeit your freedom because only the person who is not afraid to take risks is truly free. The humanity in humans is a result of taking the risk to reach out to other fellow humans, taking the risk to express yourself mentally and emotionally, taking the risk to go on living against all odds.