I always see these deadlines coming and then they smack me right in the face. It feels like we just got here and in a lot of ways we have. And yet we’re already starting our goodbyes for South Africa. That sucks. And part of me feels like I should be writing a blog about how incredible the ministry has been this month, in spite of all the spiritual oppression and how tired I’ve been. Or about the amazing people who’ve poured into us this month with their beautiful servant hearts from our hosts to the interns, about the healing powers of the ocean and how my God knows exactly what I need to rejuvenate me. And maybe I will write that blog, but not today.
Today, I want to tell you all about what I did this weekend, an unexpected result to an event that has ended up reflecting on some of the lessons I’ve learned this month.
On Saturday I got to check a major box on my bucket list; bungee jumping. We did this by taking a two hour trip to Face Adrenaline Bloukrans Bridge. It’s a 216 meter drop which, for all of you Americans translates to about 708 feet. And it has earned the bragging rights of the highest bungee bridge in the world. So obviously I thought it would be a good place to begin my bungee experience.
When you check in they give you a full body harness that goes around your legs and arms, but they really don’t tighten it much at all. Then you get to walk around in that, even watching others jump from the view of the bridge that they have from the shops that surround the base area.
Eventually, once you’ve watched so many people jump that you’re more than ready to do it yourself, they call you over and give you a few simple instructions, like to keep your arms and head up when you jump for the express purpose of looking cool. Speaking of cool, we ran into a set of Racer parents who were spending their last few days in South Africa doing things like bungee jumping after Parent Vision Trip for their daughter’s squad that launched two months before us.
So anyway, we got to walk across a see-through bridge to get to the jump spot, they gave us a few more instructions, then they started calling names of the first couple of people.
Side note: if you’re stickler for uber safety, you should know that they did not provide us with helmets. But they have been doing this for twenty three years and have yet to have a safety incident. I learned this the night before from Naomi who was freaking out about the jump hard core which resulted in telling our team lots of fun facts about it at girl’s night out.
Anyway, the guys who took us up told me that I was jumping third out of everyone, second of our group. And with the pumped up music blaring in the background and Marah’s contagious excitement, I didn’t feel any fear as I stood on the platform, waiting to get geared up. I knew the fear could be there if I chose to tap into it, but instead, I just relaxed, I was excited and I allowed myself to tap into that excitement as I waited.
So no, I wasn’t afraid.
If you’re curious, the video is now on my Facebook feed.
So when my moment came, the two guys with me yelled something along the lines of, “three, two, one, bungee!” and I jumped.
I expected to scream.
I expected to feel fear.
I hoped that it would feel like flying with Toothless in How To Train Your Dragon.
What I actually felt was much different. Maybe it’s exactly how Hiccup felt when he free falls with Toothless, but it wasn’t what I imagined. It was much better.
As I jumped and the rush of the wind in my ears drowned out any cheers of my teammates, any lingering traces of the music, all I felt was this amazing, infinite peace. Maybe it was because I knew the rope was going to catch me, maybe it was because the view of the canyon with the trees and the black river was so beautiful or maybe it was because I knew I’d found yet another thing I was going to love for the rest of my life. I’m not really sure the reason, but I know I wasn’t having a natural reaction and because of that, I know God was there with me in that moment.
It’s so cool to be able to look back on it and see God’s hand now, but seeing even further, I think it’s a great testament to what I’ve been learning this month; to open my hands, let him lead me, and just trust him that his plan is good because he is good.
Amen.
That’s all for now, folks. See you on the flip side.
~TL
