A Powerful Incentive for Facing Fears
“Superman” My Dad (58), Raising Money for Easter Seals 2007
I have a fear of heights.
Let me explain the level of fear I carry inside my gut. I start feeling light-headed and overcome with the need to sit down and get as low to the ground as physically possible. My stomach rises into my chest and desperately wants to escape out of my mouth. I gulp, only to temporarily push it back down.
I experience this sensation in a variety of settings. Most commonly on a balcony of an apartment. My preference is anything below seven stories, as that is the height fire trucks can reach with the extension of their ladders, a fact the average person does not need to know.
Skyscrapers, taller isn’t always better. How come the world needs to compete to build the tallest building? I have been in the once-tallest office building west of the Mississippi River in Houston, Texas. (Not too long before Hurricane Ike spun its way around Texas). My brother worked for a financial company there on the 74th floor. It took half a day just to reach it by several different elevators, adding unnecessary time to his commute. As I stood against the glass window pane looking down, I felt my stomach trying to go up one more floor without me, a feeling I didn’t want to linger. While telling him how impressive it was, I focused on my primary goal, returning to the lobby to reunite with the beautiful green earth that seemed an eternity away.
Another terrible sensation is riding the Ferris Wheel at the fair. How can you enjoy the view of the fairgrounds while the operator keeps stopping, causing the rickety bucket to rock back and forth? It’s unsettling to wonder how capable and trustworthy the engineer of the ride was in their job. Unpleasantly, swinging back and forth as we eagerly await the end of the wheel of horror.
I look back at my childhood and analyze where this fear may have reared its ugly head. I can’t be sure, as I never recall having a traumatic fall from any grand height. I recollect the sensation of fear being present while I was on my dad’s shoulders as a young child. He would carry me as he walked across the downtown Vancouver bridges. The ineffective guard rail was useless as it stood beneath me. I know he did not seem to have any sort of worry about me tumbling down to the water below. So why would I?
I also remember my dad taking me snow skiing while I was 5, skipping the bunny hills, and going directly to, according to my memory, a ledge of a cliff containing sharp rocks pretending to be cushioned by soft white snow.
This fear makes a sneaky appearance while I drive over a bridge, anxious to get to the other side before my car spins out of control, crashing through the rail until it splashes violently into the ocean.
This fear of heights cannot remain much longer. I must overcome it and invite it to leave. My solution? To embrace it head-on and evict it from residing inside my gut. The challenge? To raise enough money for the Easter Seals Charity to qualify to repel down a 25-storey building in my hometown of Vancouver. I will “safely” connect my body to cables and a harness, overseen by a professional. Feeling like a superhero as I dress in a Superwomen, Catwomen, or Wonderwomen costume, as I take on the persona of a brave hero. If my fear of falling from that 25-storey height comes true, I will no longer possess it as I smack the concrete below. If I make it, which is the plan, I will have defeated fear, spitting its ugly head out. To never choke on it again. My incentive in this plight is to raise funds for kids with disabilities. Please donate to this charitable adventure, and I will pledge to face my fears.
Drop Zone is an adrenaline-pumping fundraising adventure that encourages you to get out of your comfort zone and face your fears by rappelling from the top of a towering high-rise building - all in support of persons living with disabilities.
Monica practicing for the drop zone which will take place Sept 7, 2023 #EasterSealsDropZoneBC