You've Got To Face Your Fears To Move Ahead...

 

Expose yourself to your deepest fear.

After that...you are free- Jim Morrison

 

 

The Ferris Wheel showed up at the World Columbian Exposition in Chicago in 1893. It was built by George Washington Gale Ferris Jr. and I have feared it since I was a child at the state fair. Nothing against the wheel. It's a beautiful circle of color and lights, I just have a small fear of what we call heights.

 

I coach people every day to face their fears so it would be a bit hypocritical to not face my own. I have spun a few rounds on the "Wheel of Death" as I like to call it. I don't stop myself from stepping on board an airplane, so when I recently visited the Grand Canyon I made sure I pushed myself through again. I mean, I was standing at the edge of one of the wonders of the world. How could I stop myself from taking in all it's beauty?

 

I committed to taking a small hike part way down the canyon to see the sunrise at Ooh-Aah Point on the South Kaibab Trail.

 

We woke at 4am, drove to the trailhead and proceeded down the canyon. In the dark! We had a flashlight to illuminate the trail and the moon did the rest. Just enough to reveal the massive rocks and steep drops to the bottom.

 

When you are afraid of heights there is a physical reaction that goes along with the emotional terror that your mind has created for you. You literally get weak in the knees and it can overtake you at times. As we hiked down the trail my mind went through a hundred scenarios and all of them ended with me plummeting to the bottom of the canyon.

 

Every once in a while I'd look up to take in the beauty before me. I stopped to watch in amazement as a line of mules made their way down the trail in the dark with supplies, never veering from their mission. They were walking with purpose.

 

We slowly made our way down the trail, mostly my fault I imagine as I seemed to be moving one inch at a time. With each step the sky got a little lighter and before we knew it we had arrived at Ooh-Aah Point. A few moments later the sky filled with a burst of pink, orange and yellow and I was thankful. I was thankful that I didn't let my fear stand in the way of such a magnificent view.

 

 

 Life is full of scary things. You can let fear control you, or you can take control of your fears and once you do...you will free!