“There is nothing to fear but fear itself.”
I’ve heard this many times.
And as far as I know, this Roosevelt quote
has not been explored much in rhymes.

Now I admit that the line sounds great,
profound and deep yet terse.
But let’s take a calming, deep slow breath
and proceed with some thoughtful verse.

Consider a crocodile chewing your leg.
It would definitely make a loud crunch.
And I think it would be safe to say
it would also get your knickers in a bunch!

Ten thousand stings after bumping the hive
of a vicious attacking wasp brood,
would probably wipe out your kidneys.
It would definitely kill the “mood.”

Having your privates bloodied and bitten
by a rat that crawled up your pants,
would certainly force you to think a bit
about possibly skipping the dance.

And you’d turn red if confronted
with this even greater horror.
You’re drunk and nude and locked outside
after stumbling through your hotel room door!

Examples like these though a bit of a tease
make it clear that the quote is quite trite.
There’s a myriad of things lurking out there
that are worthy of our fright.

But worse than all of the threats above,
more likely and more perplexing,
is that tomorrow you might be squished like a bug
by a car whose driver is texting!