Fears Aside

I am not a fan of heights. But I don’t like staying in the comfort zone and missing out on fun experiences, especially not when I made a promise to myself to do as many enriching activities as I could this year.

Last week, we visited the Baatara gorge waterfall  (also known as Balou Balaa) near Tannourine with several of our friends. This had been a road trip a few years in the making, so I am glad that we finally got around to doing it.

The sight of the three connecting limestone bridges, with the waterfall right in the middle was worth descending the uneven steps and almost braving the natural elements. It is something to marvel at, especially now that the weather is getting better.

After we took all forms of the customary photos, my best friend Malik decided that he wanted to try the zip line, bypassing the uncomfortable hike back to the parking lot. It didn’t take long for me to agree with him, with the reasoning being that we don’t get the chance to do this every day, in such a beautiful location.

I was concerned how such a contraption would lift me up and how safe it was, but somehow I ended up setting all these concerns aside and strapped on that harness and helmet. I even had Ahmad film the whole thing for evidence (when I re-watched it, I laughed so hard at how calm and collected I seemed while saying bye to Ahmad and our friend Nadim.)

And just like that, the motor started moving, lifting me up higher and higher until I was suspended in mid-air. At this point, I was going through a mix of emotions: excitement, amazement, fear, but also, just very, very dizzy.

This was all in just one minute! Malik had gone before me, so we met up at the top and laughed at how crazy the experience was. But we were both very glad that we went on that zip line and tried something new. I know I’m less fearful of heights having done it.