I was born weak.
A premature birth caused me to spend the first few weeks of my life in an incubator. The circumstances of my birth seemed to trail me through my life.
I had a rough childhood and my teenage years weren't any better. I grew up as an insecure adult who felt he had an obligation to control everything around him.
I couldn't keep a job or a relationship. I moved from place to place searching for perfection which never came. In the long run I found myself in a bout of depression. The more I tried exercise control on events, the more they seemed to slip out of my hand.
I was at the end of my rope and I had to do something to get my life on track. I went searching for something out of the ordinary, something I wouldn't do on a normal day.
My search led me to a skydiving club and I figured I'd give the art of jumping out of functional airplanes a shot. I signed up and in a couple weeks I went on my first jumps.
They were assisted jumps where I was tethered to someone for safety, but they were insanely liberating. There's only so many things you can think about when you're falling from thousands of feet in the air.
For the first time in ages I was able to feel present and enjoy the moment, and I was loving it. Time went by and I got to the point where I was qualified to do jumps on my own.
As I took to the skies on the day of my first solo jump, I reflected on my life and the journey it took to get here. I was tired of the old ways, and I wanted to be free. I wanted to face life without fear and uncertainty.
My jump was symbolic.
I considered it a right of passage from the captivity of my youth to a place of freedom. The time came and I dived out with a smile on my face, feeling the wind on my body.
Gravity brought me down and there was nothing I could do about it. I realized then that I didn't have to worry so much. Some things were out of my control and there was nothing I could do to change that.
I could only navigate through them and try to make the right decisions with a clear mind.
I opened my chute and landed knowing my days of worry and anxiety were finally over. I got a new job, I got into a stable relationship, and I put down roots in a nice neighbourhood.
I still go skydiving when I have the chance, because that feeling of freedom up in the skies is still the greatest high for me.
Author's Note
I haven't written a story in a long while, so I decided to warm up those writing muscles.
The core theme of this story is freedom and living without worries. You can't control everything so you just gotta do what you can.
Life can be hectic at times but you can always navigate your way through.
Hope you enjoyed this. Looking forward to seeing you in another post.
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Image credits Pixabay, @jacksondavies
