Paragliding in Switzerland

“I’m going paragliding no matter what, so are you coming or not?” My roommate from study abroad asked me as we rode the train to Switzerland. I had always had a deep fear of heights, I could barely look out a window on the 6th floor of an apartment building without getting vertigo.  

My first instinct was to say no, but I had a feeling that I would regret not going. I decided to face my fear of heights and sign up, and before I knew it we were driving up the highest mountain in Interlocken.

We got hooked up to our paragliding gear, and the instructors told us to “run as fast as we could” and to jump when they said “JUMP!”. I could not believe that I was really about to run and jump off a mountain with a person attached to my back that I had met for the first time 30 minutes prior.

As soon as we took flight, I felt an overwhelming feeling of peace that I would have never expected to feel at that moment. Time slowed down as we glided through the air over the mountain tops. The sun was setting, the views were unbelievable, and I completely forgot that I was afraid of heights. I had zero anxiety and was overwhelmed with happiness.

If I could do that, I could do anything. I learned from this experience to never let my fears get in the way of trying new things. Fear is just a feeling and if you face it head-on, the
“Fear” will have no choice but to dissolve into feelings of gratitude and happiness. The day that I jumped through the sky was the day that I realized that on the other side of fear is something that we won’t regret, something that allows us to grow as people.

-Sarah Tischbein