If you read the previous article then you might know what this posting is about. It is a story from the past. Distant past? My past!
This story begins with several teen age boys out goofing around. We were old enough to drive and there was 4 or 5 of us. We had went to Trail of Tears Park and drove down to the area nearest the Mississippi river.
For those of you who don’t know, there is a railroad track that passed through that area. Someone in our group told us of some interesting bluffs that we could explore. We parked in the area and walked up the tracks for a fair distance. Then we moved off the tracks and started up into the rocks. It was kinda neat as there was a path in and around the rocks as we progressed up into the bluffs. It was like what you see in the movies, you know, a trail about 2 feet wide along the edge of the mountain, in this setting, along the edge of the bluff.
It was very fund and fairly safe, until we came to a gap in the path. This gap was about 3feet wide and the drop below the gap was possibly 30 to 40 feet. To cross the gap, one would need to jump across the 3 foot opening and up about a foot. On the other side, the landing area, we would be in between rocks giving us a safe landing. Everyone made the jump safely and we proceeded on up the path. At some point we reached the top and we had one of those really nice views of the Mississippi.
It was time to head back down the path, and for some reason I was the last person in the group heading down. All was good until we made it to the gap. It was totally different now. We would be jumping out from between rock walls across the 3 foot opening. The landing area was down below the takeoff area, about two feet wide, a foot below the launching area and one side of the landing area was a rock wall, with the other side being open. In other words, if you jumped and slipped or tripped, you had one side wall to hold onto and the other side was a fifty foot drop to the rail road tracks below.
Everyone made it safely ahead of me and when I looked at the situation I almost panicked. I did not want to jump over that gap, I knew I could fall. Being with the guys did not change my thoughts I knew I could fall. I stood there looking at it for a short while. I stopped looking down and I focused only on the landing site.
Focused on the landing only, I told myself, I can do it. I jumped over the gap by a couple feet landing safely, we safely climbed back down to the railroad tracks.
As I have said in the past, a positive attitude can help or hurt, it depends on you!
I am positive I can’t do that or I am positive I can do that. It is up to you!
Think positively, and you can do it!
Don Ford
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