It takes 3 years to grow the fruit of a peach and chestnut

When I was a kid, we did abseiling at camp. After that experience, my fear of heights did not alleviate but rather reinforced itself. It took a lot of courage for me to even climb up that cliff and look down at the nervous faces below. I stood over the edge of the cliff, leaned backwards and started taking a few steps down the cliff. Well the person in charge of the ropes sort of let out too much rope, so I went sliding down more than half of the cliff.

I think I have every reason to be afraid after that. A friend and I decided to go to the fair, we came across the  chained carousel pictured above. The fear of heights was mutual between us, but we decided to give it a go. We sat down in the seats and noticed the children were unable to contain their excitement. We merely exchanged worried glances.

I was concerned that the chain might snap whilst I was in mid air and I would be propelled to my inevitable death. What if I accidentally kicked the little girl seated in front of me or maybe I'd drop my shoes onto an unsuspecting spectator below... As soon as the chairs begun to lift, I held onto the chains with my dear life. I was still freaking out by the time the ride started, my hands were sweating, the chains were digging into my palms.

Eventually it wasn't so bad. I had to let go of the chains a little, my hands were really hurting. I figured I should open my eyes after keeping them shut for half the time, it was only then that I realized my fear seemed so little. I was marveled by the sights and sounds below, I didn't care if my shoe was going to land on a spectator below. Sometimes you need to let go of your fears and inhibitions in order to really live.