Are You Afraid of Heights?

Photo by Cam Adams on Unsplash

Today’s post is in place of what was going to be posted. That one was going to be interactive. Due to extra work hours, I couldn’t work on it. So I decided to write this one.

Isn’t that a scary scene above? When I first found this photo, I started sweating. I wasn’t even sure I was going to be able to use it.

I don’t know about you but I’m afraid of heights. I don’t like being high up in the air.

My adventures with heights started in junior high. Everyone remembers their junior high school days. Some of you may have called it something else. Back when I was going to school, it was named junior high. Now it’s called middle school.

Junior high consisted of grades seven through nine. I did some checking and it has changed now. Now it is only seventh and eighth grades.

My school was the Hawks. Our colors were red, yellow, and white.

If you ask kids what their favorite subject is, you might hear classes like math and English. Kids excel in different subjects. I know some kids will say P.E. (Physical Education). I think it’s because you don’t have to do any real work. Sometimes, you don’t have to do anything. I saw kids goof off during P.E. We would be required to run laps around the track and they would cut through the area so they wouldn’t have to run the whole thing.

As a side note, not related to the heights story, one instance of the kids goofing off was during a flag football game. There were about 4 of us on each team. Most of the kids didn’t want to participate. We had flags on each side of our body held on by a white belt. The flags were red. Someone kicked off and they just left the ball there and started walking off. The teacher, Mrs. S, had already told everyone they would get in trouble if they didn’t play. The three people on my team walked off and wouldn’t play. I picked the ball up and started to run with it. I ran as fast as I could. The opposite team tried to grab my flag but they couldn’t. I ran by them and scored the touchdown. As I walked back, I saw that they had all gone somewhere else and just quit. I don’t remember if they got in trouble but I didn’t.

Okay, back to the subject at heart.

I can’t remember what year these “incidents” took place. The first one I remember is the rope climb. There were two ropes hanging from the gymnasium ceiling. The ceiling was white with a bunch of metal bars. My head tilted and looked straight up. I thought to myself, “Wow, that’s high”. The kids in my class all rushed to the front of the lines. I did not. I made sure I was in the back. I always seemed to be in the line to the right. I was nervous. How nervous? I was terrified. How would I get up that rope? If I did make it, how was I going to get down? I envisioned myself falling to the mat and something terrible happening to me.

Well, the first time I encountered this rope climb, I lucked out and we only got through so many kids in the line and I didn’t have to try it. Whew!

The next time, some of the other kids struggled and they had problems trying to ascend. Then the class ended. I was saved again!

The third time I wasn’t so lucky. My luck ran out. They went through all the kids. The next thing I know I’m at the head of the line. I observed the rope with its huge knot tied on the bottom. The end of the rope was about up to my chest. I wondered how I was going to pull myself up this rope. Do you know how I did it? I didn’t. LOL!! I grabbed the rope and tried with all my might to pull myself up. It wasn’t going to happen. The other kids pulled themselves up and used their legs around the rope to keep themselves on the rope. Then they reached higher and pulled themselves up along the rope. A few got all the way to the top and then shot back down the rope.

A few other times when I got to the front of the line, I didn’t even try. I just retreated to the rear of the line. I’m sure the other students said something to me. I probably told them I couldn’t do it.

Have you ever had the opportunity to do the high bar? Do you know what it is? You’ve seen this at track meets and in the Olympics. I took the liberty to create a piece of art for you. This is not to scale.

Drawing by Matt Murray

You are supposed to run up and then arch your back and fly over the bar. It is easier said than done. Most of the kids could do it. I was one of the few who could not. I couldn’t even get over the bar. I just ran into it and knocked it down.

It was always hard for me to go up to the top of the bleachers. We had to do it a few times. The other kids would run like crazy to the highest possible bleacher. I stayed near the bottom.

Fast forward to high school. My school’s colors were green and white. We were the bulldogs. My fear of heights this time was the football stands. I went to a football game. It was my first and only game. We were going up into the stands. There were people everywhere. The object was to go up high enough so we could see the action. I was scared to death. I told my Mom I couldn’t go up any further. I don’t remember who we were even playing.

Under the benches, there was an open space. I was afraid of falling or getting caught in the open space. The women had to hang on to their purses. There was no place to put them. In other places I have gone to that space is usually closed off. Of course that was many years later. Not here. At one time during the game, they threw small white with green accent footballs into the stands. One came right at me but the guy in front of me got it. Probably a good thing because I was scared.

Many years ago, I lived in an apartment on the second floor. It had a balcony and I wanted to go out there and sit. What better thing than to enjoy the outdoors. The railing area was open and not screened. It was scary, even through it was only the second floor. I had to walk to the storage closet a few times and I made sure I didn’t go anywhere near that railing.

Right now I live in a third-story condo. When I was looking at it with the Realtor, I walked out on the screened-in balcony to test it. I looked down at the ground and it looked like I could probably do it. Once I moved in, it took me a few weeks to get adjusted to being up so high when I was sitting on the balcony.

Conclusion

Well, there you have it. Are any of you afraid of heights? If so, do you have any telling stories about your instances?

Until next time, happy reading!

-Matt