Challenging my fear at Genesse Valley

I am a mentor in Student Leadership Corps (SLC) at Loyola University Maryland. Each year, all SLC members take a trip to Genesee Valley Outdoor Learning Center to get connected with other participants and mentors in SLC. 

I despise heights. I like rollercoasters and airplanes, but anything that involves standing over cliffs or jumping from a platform is a no for me. However, during this trip, I challenged that fear.

The first activity we did was called “Where the Wind Blows.” For this game, the person in the middle of the circle says a statement like “The wind blows if your favorite color is blue.” If the favorite color of the individuals on the outside of the circle is blue, then they would move to a different spot in the circle. The person that doesn’t find a spot would then be in the middle of the circle and the process would repeat. I discovered there were a lot of similarities between us. We’ve all played an instrument, love music, have been to a concert, and are in a leadership position on campus. 

In the next activity, my group had to pretend that we were chicken nuggets that had to figure out a way to not fall into the “fryer”. In order to complete the activity, everyone had to walk across the plank to get to the other side of the “fryer.” The instructor did mention that we didn’t have to walk across the plank if we didn’t want to which was perfect for me because I had no intentions on walking across that plank. Luckily, I wasn’t the only one who felt like this either. The plank was probably about three feet off the ground, but as I mentioned before, I do not like heights.  

I was conflicted with myself during this activity. I did want to complete the challenge, but I was afraid of falling off the plank. It didn’t help that I wasn’t confident in my balancing abilities either. Towards the end of the challenge, there were about four people remaining, including me. The four of us had one thing in common: we didn’t want to walk across the plank. I found comfort in that because I realized I wasn’t the only one who was afraid of heights. The majority of the group that walked across the plank made it look like an easy task, so I decided to step out of my comfort zone.

Out of nowhere I heard myself say, “I’ll go next!” Next thing you know, I have the helmet on and getting ready to walk across the plank. 

Getting ready for the high ropes course

And guess what happened? 

I made it!

I made it across the plank, and didn’t lose my balance or fall.  My peers and the instructor were encouraging me the entire time I walked across which made me more confident. This was a pivotal moment for me and my peers who remained on the other side because they decided to walk across the plank too.

 

The final challenge of that day was the high ropes course. I was informed about the high ropes course prior to the trip, and I had already decided that I wasn’t going to complete the course. Despite that, I was still feeling very proud of myself after completing the previous activity, and I wanted to keep feeling that.

 

I learned that one of my mentees is also afraid of heights. I wanted to show her that it’s okay to step out of your comfort zone and take risks which is how I ended up doing the ropes course. As my mentee went through the course, I gave her words of encouragement to motivate her to keep going until she completed the course. Then it was my turn.

Me and my SLC mentees 

Although I seemed calm while going through course, 

I was very anxious. I thought about turning back around multiple times. However, I did feel relieved every time I completed a section and when I heard my peers supporting me. 

I am proud that I completed the high ropes course. However, I don’t plan on doing another high ropes course or anything else dealing with heights anytime soon.