What is an inspirational place to me? I can think of only one. It takes me to emotional places that I’m never at. It makes me feel unique and special. This place makes me feel confident like I have wings and I can fly anywhere. In this particular place, I am optimistic because it motivates me to do things I wouldn’t dare to do normally. It helps me conquer my biggest fears. This place helped me conquer my fear of heights. The bravery and determination I felt could only be found in this place. Slovenia.
I visited Slovenia throughout the summer of 2013. Slovenia is beautiful from all perspectives. Its most distinct and touching beauties are the green mountains and the beautiful wildlife. There are such amazing forests, sparkling streams and breathtaking waterfalls. You don’t get to see such remarkable things anywhere else in the world. It has such outstanding and clean beaches, ponds and lakes. The rivers were amazing for canoeing and kayaking, taking me through marvelous waterfalls. The waters were crashing down on to rocks at a perfect tempo, which made listening to it so enjoyable. At times, it seemed like the waters were just as excited and full of life as I was to be there.
The extreme sports I participated in were especially significant. I never expected to be able to do extreme sports of any kind however, towards the end I realized that they all inspired me from so many perspectives. At first, I was nervous and scared. There were many rope obstacles at least 20m high. Being afraid of heights, I was only able to attempt these due to the clean open air as well as all the beautiful mountains and forests I was able to see from up there. I was hanging by a rope in midair, but it felt like flying or like I was an astronaut floating in space. There, 20m in the air, I was safe physically and emotionally, although I expected to feel the opposite.
At some point I reached almost 100m above ground which expanded my view greatly. The higher I got, the more astonishingly beautiful the view got. I could see so deep into the mountains that I forgot I was even in the air. The wind was blowing which made the trees dance so marvelously. This all made the mood perfect and evoked such motivation within me to go on with my participation in the extreme sports.
The most crucial activity for me was bungee jumping. I was almost 100m above ground and I was supposed to jump in into nothing, held only by a rope. Preparing to jump, I looked out at the beautiful view of the Slovenian Alps and was swept into a daydream. All I could hear was the wind blowing strongly. There were no cars, no city lights and no noise pollution. I was just surrounded by enormous mountains. It was beautiful. I was oblivious of my family and friends who were standing on the ground screaming up to me and supporting me, all well aware of my fear of heights. In that moment, at peace with the beauteous view in front of me, I felt confident about jumping. I didn’t need any support. I just stood there, breathing in the incredibly fresh, clean air.
The time to jump was coming. I looked down at the ground; then I made a wise decision not to do that again. Oddly, despite the height, I felt safer than ever. It was so bizarre that I felt no fear; I just knew that I could do this. Still relishing in my inner peace, I looked up at the sky and jumped. Flying through the air, my mind cleared and I had no thoughts. Thinking could happen later, on the ground. My eyes were closed most of the time and I remember the profound silence as I free-fell. As I let go and jumped from such a height, I also let go of my fear of heights. It felt so good!
My family and friends said they were cheering for me while they looked on from below. I didn’t even think I deserved any cheering. In my perspective, that was only a small accomplishment, aided by the beautiful mountains and the clean fresh air. I overcame my acrophobia, but I didn’t deserve any special cheering. It was Slovenia that deserved all the credit. I had taken a great step in my life and because of it, I now have the confidence to do other things I would have never done before. The Slovenian Alps gave me an inner peace I will always have and still inspire me to continue taking great steps in my life.
Douaa Satel
About the Author: Douaa is 14 years old, from Israel. She is a freshman in high school. She has been writing since she was very young. Douaa enjoys traveling, playing the guitar, writing and baking.
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