One of the main attractions here in Moab is four wheeling and off road adventures. One of the reasons we bought a Jeep was for this very purpose. Now, we had practiced in Indiana maneuvering up and around rocks and hills, perfected our confidence driving around mesas in Zion, and now we had the chance to try some legendary trails in Moab. My husband was very excited!
Gary does great driving slowly and finding his best route on these “trails”.I on the other hand, sit with my hands clutching the grab bar, my body thrashing about with each rock and divot on harrowing hills and back road dust trails. Occasionally,I am excited to complete a difficult turn or am happy when we get out of the Jeep to look around. One place we saw dinosaur tracks! Often though, my head and elbows hurt, and I am nervous looking over the edges of cliffs and thousand foot drop-offs.
So can you fault me for not wanting to accompanying my dear husband on many more trips to places like Hells Revenge or Metal Crush Trails?
Just as in life itself, I think the fun lies in being the driver, not a passenger.
I used to suffer from acrophobia, an irrational fear of heights. It was made worse about 18 years ago from vertigo caused by a concussion I received falling off a pogo stick in my sister’s garage…. Long story……Certainly a big part of our family lore of silly stories about Aunt Cathy!
Unlike my fear of snakes, I have actually overcome my irrational fear of heights due in a large part to the once in a lifetime trip our son Cameron sent us on two years ago to Australia. We did the Sydney Harbour Bridge climb and if scaling and walking over the top of a four hundred foot tall bridge cant cure your fears…nothing will.
I am so glad I have been relieved of these height issues while on this trip. We have driven and hiked mountains and cliffs and have stood on top of precipices overlooking breathtaking vista, small towns, and the utter beauty that is the United States of America.
Now, I still have problems with underground parking garages and steep cliffs on windy days, but at 55 years old, I am happy to continue to try new things and conquer old fears. Isn’t this trip evidence of our willingness to step up our game and say, “Why not?”