I was standing at the gondola door with my toes over the edge. 400 feet below me of emptiness and the beautiful Lake Lucerne. My heart pounded, louder than anything, as I waited for the countdown. I was about to bungee jump out of the gondola in Switzerland, something I had dreamt and feared for many years.
For as long as I can remember, I have loved seeking thrills. Maybe it was the rush of adrenaline that made it so enjoyable. For many years, I was limited to just roller coasters to satisfy my craving for thrills for many reasons. Timing. Safety. Age. Until this summer.
We were riding on a train to return to our villa when I came across a TikTok about the best activities to do in Switzerland. Jokingly, I showed my dad the bungee jump featured in the video. I immediately thought he would quickly turn down the idea, but to my surprise, he supported it. His reaction caught me off guard. All of a sudden, the joke was turning into reality, and I was terrified. All day I kept going back to it. Did I actually want to bungee jump? Or did I just like the idea of it? But part of me didn’t want to miss this opportunity, so I took it.
I was all strapped up. They double-checked everything and clipped the bungee cord to my ankles, and I awkwardly shuffled my way toward the edge. The view was breathtaking, the beautiful Lake Lucerne surrounded by snow-tipped mountains. Before I could take in this view, the countdown began. Three…Two…One…BUNGEE! I jumped. Or I fell. Once my feet left the platform, my body was taken over by adrenaline. The wind pushed against me. My stomach dropped, and my brain went silent. For 5 long seconds, I was weightless, and I felt so alive. And then, the rope caught me, swinging me in the air like a trapeze artist, flying across a circus. I was flooded with so many emotions I couldn’t even begin to express how I felt, but it was unreal.
Later, when I was back down on the ground, I kept thinking about the moment before I jumped and how badly I wanted to back out. It made me think about all the times that I hesitated to do something because of my fear. This experience reminded me that fear shouldn’t stop you from doing things and that many great things often lie over the edge.
Leave a Reply