Alright, let me set the stage here by saying that I love it when my daughters tell me that I am one cool mom. I get all mushy when I hear them bragging to their friends about me...wouldn't any mom? Now, this often causes me to do things that go against my better judgement. Here's a case in point...
We took a family vacation to a favorite place of ours, Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida. Well, Chris had mentioned to me before we left that he wanted us to have lots of fun together as a family by riding all sorts of rides. Don't get me wrong...I LOVE rides, I really do! I love water rides, carousels, motion simulators....you get the picture! What I DO NOT like are roller coasters or anything that involves a lot of height! What's really strange is that it doesn't bother me to fly, and I'm not scared to climb mountains or ride ski lifts or gondolas. I just don't like that helpless feeling of falling...way down!
Well, Chris has this way of talking me into "broadening my horizons", so to speak. So, when we were at Universal Studios, he managed to convince me into getting on the Dueling Dragons roller coaster...ALONE!!! Abby wasn't tall enough to ride it and Brittany wasn't quite old enough yet to watch Abby for the time it would take Chris to ride it with me. Now, I had been on Space Mountain at Disney several times and I loved it...wanna know why? It's in the dark, people, and I couldn't see where I was going! It was SO much fun...not scary, in the slightest!
After much hem-hawing around, I made the executive decision to hop on Dueling Dragons because I wanted to impress my family by staring fear dead in the face!!! I am woman, hear me roar!!! I sat down and harnessed myself in nice and tight...my heart was pounding! For a moment, I thought about jumping off and proclaiming, "I'm a chicken and proud of it!" A young couple sat right next to me. Then, the moment came all too soon when the ride began to move and we started chug-a-chugging almost straight up. I knew I was in trouble, but, I plastered a big, happy grin on my face as I waved goodbye! We got to the very top...and that's all I remember! I clamped my eyes shut as tightly as I could and screamed my ever-loving head off! I didn't take a peek one single time, and I think that made the ride even more terrifying. The poor kids sitting next to me were probably deaf by the time all was said and done! I'm pretty sure I even threw in a "Help me, Jesus!" here and there...I was scared out of my mind! When my feet finally touched land, again, I didn't utter a word to Chris for a good while...it was all HIS fault, you know! Of course, he and the girls thought it was hilarious!!! Here's a video I found on You Tube that gives you a small glimpse of what I went through...
Oh, and it didn't end there! Chris talked me into going on Dr. Doom's Fearfall. It's no walk in the park, either! It catapults you up 10 stories in the air. I, literally, thought I was going to fly right out of my seat! I was shaking like a leaf when I got off that thing! I told Chris, "Never, again!"...but, all he did was laugh! Shameful, isn't it??? :)
So, I guess I conquered my fear of roller coasters and heights...at least, temporarily! Without a doubt, those experiences took more courage than I ever thought I could muster. Cool mom or not...I'm just glad I lived to tell about it!
"If God wanted us to be brave, why did He give us legs?"~Marvin Kitman
