STRENGTH OF WOMEN: Fear- This past weekend I took my two children to Six Flags Discovery Kingdom in Vallejo. When I was younger my sister and I were fearless when it came to rides. The scarier the better! Then I started having children and started taking the side lines when it came to the rides. My ex-husband, my step-dad or their uncle would take the older kids on the scary rides while I was always with the younger ones on the smaller rides or waiting for the big kids to return. I never thought about my role, it was just something moms did. As the kids grew, so did my fear of the bigger rides. I no longer had that desire to feel the G-force in my hair. I also realized I have a lot of fear as I got closer to the age my real dad was when he passed away. He was killed in a car accident when I was only 16 years old. I am always fearful of something happening to me and I don’t want my kids to grow up without both parents, so I have grown extremely cautious in my older years. My daughter wanted to ride the Medusa at the park. This ride has g-force speed; your feet are hanging the whole time while you do crazy drops and turns. The description for the Medusa: “There’s nothing as frightening as the Medusa, the tallest, fastest, longest and most technologically advanced roller coaster in Northern California.” Need I say more? I didn’t have anyone else to take her and her brother has never liked the fast crazy rides. A friend told me once that FEAR is a good thing. It makes us remember we are alive and tests our character. Without fear, there would be no courage. I didn’t want to disappoint my daughter, so I went on the ride with her. I had to remind myself when I got on the ride to breath but I made it! It was the biggest adrenaline rush! I remembered why I used to like them and made me feel really young and somewhat stupid again! I defeated my fear and made my daughter smile. It is amazing how we can find strength in ourselves especially when our children need us. “Fear, anger, and pain take away our passion for life” ~ Dr. Derek Greenfield. I don’t know about you but I want to keep my passion for life.