The Ocean Beneath My Feet

I have always wanted Elijah to have a healthy sense of adventure. And for the most part, he does. I never want him to be afraid of common things - walks in the woods, darkness, bugs, swimming in the creek, etc. I want him to know that I would never put him in harm’s way. However, this often times has me putting myself out there in circumstances that I wouldn’t otherwise have found.

Perfect example: parasailing.

I wouldn’t say I am fearful but I do second guess myself in situations when I might have to ask, “How many people have died doing this?”

Parasailing was always Elijah’s idea. He asked about it last year when we vacationed in South Padre. I was able to change the subject, avoid it altogether and we never saw one parasailor in the sky. Florida was going to be different. He talked about it for weeks leading up to the vacation. Flying in a plane, first. He was excited beyond words. When he dreamed of flying, his mind wandered to that one joy he wanted last summer - to parasail. He looked up a video on You Tube, googled it for pictures, and begged me to find out more information. And one last thing: promise that he would get to do it this year.

I finally agreed. However, as a mother, you would never let your child do something like this without being there, too. We think we are super-moms. That if by chance, we were in a life-threatening situation, we would save our child. As the line would break, and we be whisked away into the sky by our bright yellow, smiley-face parachute, I would be there to comfort Elijah and tell him everything was go to be okay as we eventually spiraled to certain…. you get the picture, right?

We parasailed. Not only did we parasail, we found the one company that used 1200 feet of line instead of 800 feet. We loved it. I can’t describe how peaceful it was to be slowly cascading over the ocean with the most perfect view. Knowing all was perfect in Elijah’s world, he had done the one thing he had been wanting to do for a year. It was his paradise. It was surreal for him, magical.

Once we returned home, all he could talk about was parasailing. He was ecstatic. He then figured out parasailing wasn’t enough. He now wants to skydive. Fortunately, after a certain amount of research, I have discovered you have to be 18 in Arkansas to skydive. Yes! While I wanted to explain to Elijah with no hesitation, I do not do anything where I have to look for a landing. Nothing. I had to explain to him that it just would not happen for him…for 10 years.

Thank you, Elijah, for always being an adventure for me.