There I was, in gym class in the 4th grade at Huckleberry Hill Elementary School in Brookfield, CT, in the midst of a volleyball game.
It was the whole class – girls, guys, good players, non-existent players (the “I will keep my hands pinned to my sides regardless of what we’re doing!” players) – the whole gang.
As you might know already, I’m an enthusiastic guy, and I was no different in 4th grade. So there I was, trying to rally the troops on our team. Now, I promise I wasn’t that obnoxious guy who yelled at the girls that weren’t playing. I was just trying to encourage people, have fun, and play some volleyball.
In the midst of this, after maybe a few claps to rally the team or a word of encouragement, one kid (I remember his name but we’ll keep him anonymous!), said to me, “Who are you, Captain Kangaroo?”
I actually didn’t know much about Captain Kangaroo until today, when I researched him and his TV show a bit. Captain Kangaroo was a children’s television series which aired weekday mornings on the American television network CBS for nearly 30 years, from October 3, 1955 until December 8, 1984, making it the longest-running nationally broadcast children’s television program of its day.
Now, at the time I had no clue who Captain Kangaroo was, but the meaning was clear. I’m sure a few kids laughed and I don’t remember all the details, what I do remember is that feeling of being deflated…of my energy, my being, sinking back into itself as I learned very clearly that it wasn’t safe to be myself or to stand out.
It’s silly, I know. And it makes it extra funny when we can look at Mr. Captain Kangaroo (What a haircut! See the picture? That’s him!). 🙂
But until I explored this story and tapped on my feelings around it, it was affecting who I was and how I showed up in the world.
Why? Because a small part of me (or maybe a big one), learned that it wasn’t safe to stand out, to be myself, to be enthusiastic.
What’s your “Captain Kangaroo” story? The one where you think back on your life, especially your childhood, where you learned it wasn’t safe to be YOU?
Who told you? What did they say? How did you react? How has it changed who you are?
These experiences, especially as they stack on top of each other, can have dramatic effects on your life today.
You know WHO YOU ARE…
Are you being THAT PERSON?
If not, WHY NOT?
It’s likely because of these experiences, and it’s essential that you tap through them and clear them out.
So how do you do that? Here’s how…
Here’s an easy three-step process to clearing an event from the past.
Try to be as specific with it as possible and only start with one for now. You can do more later, but for now, focus on ONE experience where someone said something to you, where you said something, where you learned that it wasn’t safe to stand out and be YOU.
When you think about the event, feel what you felt then or even how you feel now about it, and rate the intensity on a 0-10 scale.
With your eyes closed, tap through all the points, as you see the movie play. Keep tapping through the points, moving whenever you want, and running the movie again and again, in as much detail as possible.
See it, feel it, smell it, hear it, make it real, and keep tapping. Notice what stands out to you most about the movie, and focus on that issue. Notice where you feel a ‘charge’ and focus on that, and just keep tapping, tapping, tapping.
Tap until you can see the movie, without feeling an emotional charge.
What have you done? You’ve healed that event, cleared the emotional charge, processed the stuck energy through your body, reminded your body it’s safe!
Rinse and repeat for any events that you can think of!
By the way, I made this joke before, “rinse and repeat” referring to what a shampoo bottle says. Someone took it very literally and emailed asking if they should shower in between each tapping session! It’s actually not a bad idea, water is very cleansing, but you don’t have to do it between each tapping round. 🙂
It is often these childhood events, small and large, that limit us, that keep us stuck. The fear of standing out, of being different, of being seen is SO common and so limiting. Living the life of our dreams means we are being our most AUTHENTIC selves. There’s no getting around that. All your dreams, hopes, and desires are directly related to you being YOURSELF.
So clear out the junk from the past and BE YOU.
The themes I discussed above, both childhood traumatic events and specifically the fear of standing out or the belief that it’s not safe to be YOU in the world, can have a dramatic influence on all parts of our lives.
You can learn more about this idea and other key ways to use tapping to increase your self-confidence by downloading The Tapping Solution App. There are over 100 tapping meditations in there to help you become the most authentic YOU!
Until next time…
Keep Tapping!
Nick Ortner
Copyright © 2024 The Tapping Solution, LLC
Actually Fred Rogers was supposed to have been a trained navy seal in the Vietnam era==a trained Killer? Really how do folks believe this kind of stuff—with a face that couldn’t scare your mama he was just as mild mannered and beautiful a person as he appeared on camera.