How do you step from the top of a 100-foot pole?

Since I was small I was amazed by those acrobats in the circus that walked from the one side of the rope to the other side. I am not sure how high the rope was from the group, but it was high enough. I always wanted to close my eyes when they took the first step from the pole onto the rope, afraid he/she was going to fall. My eyes would be focused on the acrobat from the start to the end, and was I relieved when he/she made it.

My experience stepping onto a platform that was 40m from the ground was in 2004 when I did the Tree top canopy touring in Tsitsikamma/Storms river. There were seven trees that you had to slide from one tree to the next. After you got to the tree on the other side you had to step from the platform onto a different platform. The anxiety, excitement that went through my body that day was unbelievable and I can't explain it. I was sceard but it was also so exciting and challenging. The longest distance between two trees was 70 m and you had to slide from one tree to another. My feet, legs and stomach had butterflies and at times I felt like turning around and going back, but I couldn't. I couldn't turn around the only way out was to continue, so I continued and to date this was one of the best experiences in my life.

So how do you step from the top of a 100-foot pole? You close your eyes and open them quickly, step forward and never look back. After doing it, you would feel so proud about yourself.

We are what we do

Life is about fun they say? What do you do for fun? I love walking on the beach with my husband and dog. This is only when time permits. Does this make me a nature lover, animal lover, married women? All of the above is probably true. None of these things are bad or out of the ordinary. If I said that I loved doing drugs, drink myself drunk every evening and hate dogs, will that make me a bad person, a person with issues? I would think so because that won't be quality of life. Would you like to be known as a caring person or a person who doesn't care about anybody but him/herself. When people speak about you what would you like them to say? I would like to think that in somebody's life I made a difference, it doesn't matter how big or small. When you die one day what would you like to be written on your tomb stone or said on your funeral. Think about this when you do something from no-one.

We are afraid of the wrong things

What are you afraid of? In Afrikaans there is a song called the Brave mouse. The mouse sings that is he is a brave mouse, we should watch him walk through the house and there is nothing that he is afraid of. As the song continues things happen like the cat comes in, he walks pass a mouse trap, a lady tries to hit him with a broom and suddenly he is afraid of all these things. These things are all things that a mouse is afraid. I think we are also like that, we pretend we are not afraid of things but in reality we are afraid of being home alone, being a victim of crime, afraid that someone will get hold of your bank account and draw all your money, that your parents, brothers/sisters or husband will die before you, these are to name but a few. Are these the right things to be afraid of or should we not be afraid at all? I think that it is natural to be afraid, we are human and prone to be sensitive, afraid and let our emotions take over. However I think we should worry less in life and rather do the cliche saying and "Seize the day". There are to many things to be thankful for, to sit in a corner and be afraid or worry to much.