I had never thought I would be where I am today. Rainwater steadily fell off the leaves on the tall, sturdy cypress trees.  It was a hot, humid day in the outskirts of the Costa Rican rainforest. The birds were chirping, the monkeys howling, and the sun was  furiously beating down on my already sunburnt back. Our excursion destination is a zip-line facility set deep in the middle of the rainforest. Sitting on a bus that reeked of old age, the seats torn up at corners, and the floor stained from constant years of use, the putrid smell of mildew wafted up into my sinuses. I’ve never been ziplining, so the thought of propelling myself at 60 miles per hour, strapped onto a thin metal line, hundreds of feet above the sturdy ground of the rainforest floor was nerve-racking to say the least.

One foot after the other, I hesitantly stepped out of the bus.  Looking up towards the sky, the zipline was a tightrope from a circus, dangerously thin, and ready to snap at any moment's hesitation. Starting to have second thoughts, I turned back towards the bus, only to realize it was long gone, back down the neverending, winding road that had brought us here. Grudgingly walking over to the main building of the facility, I thought of so many things I’d rather be doing. Fishing on my boat, playing baseball, anything besides riding a metal wire hundreds of feet above the Costa Rican rainforest. Thoughts blurred through my head, my vision dulled, and I was tempted to turn back and never look back.

For I could not remember the last time I had attempted something that seemed so dangerous; something that could kill me with one minor fluke. As we reached the top of the platform, reality hit me about what I was about to do. I looked back, thinking I could escape the horrid experience that was presenting itself before me. All I saw were the somber faces of the dozens of people waiting behind me. It was now or never, do or die, time to jump.

Closing my eyes as tight as a vice, I stepped off of the platform and into the realm of unknowing. My stomach dropped, my head spun, and I felt like I was about to vomit. Then I opened my eyes. Before me lay the most phenomenal, prepossessing, and literally the most stunning view I had even seen. I looked down at my feet, hovering 600 feet above the rainforest; I imagined every animal, insect, and bird that lived down there peering up to see me flying past them. Forget everything that I said earlier… this is the best thing that I have ever done in my entire lifetime. Time slowed, the trees waved their luscious green arms at me, and the oceans waves crashed upon the shoreline. After a thousand years, I finally made it to the second platform. This was everything I had feared, yet now everything I had ever wanted.

For I could not ever imagine another experience like this. One that boosted pure adrenaline and left your mouth gaping at the stunning view before you. As I lay suspended above the jungle, I felt like I was free. Free of any worry I had ever possessed, and free of any struggles that were bound to come. Experiences like these are once in a lifetime, and I told myself, right then and right there, I would never even think about turning my head to something I had never done before.

As I attached my harness to the second zipline, I felt beyond excited for the experience that was yet to come. I jumped off of the platform, and flew towards the opening mouth of the rainforest. My feet dangled below me, the sun shone above me, nature glowed around me, and I let out a scream of excitement that echoed through every inch of the rainforest. “WOOOO-HOOOOO.”