Being forced to face my fear

Then came a day when it all changed. I was in my mid-20’s when another friend of my mom’s invited the two of us to join her and her family at a local amusement park. The company she worked for at the time had their company picnic there, and she could bring several guests. I was initially leery at accepting the invitation, as this was going to be at an amusement park where there would surely be a roller coaster or two. But this park (now known as Six Flags America) had a large water park, and I figured we could spend our time there and avoid any coasters. Well, that strategy would backfire spectacularly, much to my chagrin. The day started out nicely, with beautiful weather and sunny skies. But at some point, probably after the picnic lunch, we began to wander further out into the park, led by my mom’s friend. “Kim” was a very bold and assertive person, who would think nothing of wandering off and exploring and wasn’t afraid to do just about anything. The first potential nightmare we came across was the Wild One, the park’s old wooden coaster. I reluctantly joined our group in line. Surprisingly my mom also got in line, especially in light of her disdain of the Rebel Yell. I figured if I could deal with the Rebel Yell, I could deal with this coaster. And so I white-knuckled it all the way thru the course, and I was glad when the ride finally came to an end. Surprisingly my mom actually rode this coaster, though she wished she hadn’t, as it was a bit rough. There was another coaster nearby, called the Python. It had one single loop and a shuttle track where the train would go forwards thru the loop and then backwards again. I was quite thankful when I realized it was closed. We rode some of the other rides as the afternoon progressed, and all was well. But then we ended up crossing into a more remote area of the park, which was hidden away among the trees. There was a water ride in this part of the park, which we did not do because Kim had a cast on her ankle. Then we continued on thru what was at the time a Western themed section. Suddenly, appearing from behind a row of buildings was a most unimaginable sight. This was a huge roller coaster, one where the riders’ feet dangle beneath them as they navigate its winding course. Worse yet was that this coaster had multiple loops and inverted elements, not just one like the Python. And to put the cherry on top of this dire situation was the fact that this twisted horror was up and running! If the Python had been open, merely contemplating riding it would have been bad enough. But I was spared that dilemma. Not so with this hideous tangle of bright bluish green track that riders hurtled along from below. My mom immediately bailed, and said she was going to have a seat on a nearby bench. Surely Kim would not attempt to ride this one, with her foot in a cast. My mom and I were both surprised that she even made a fair attempt to walk around the park at all, much less ride some of the bigger rides. I expected her son and his friends (who were close to my age) to make a run for it and get in line. But then I saw she was following right behind them. I stopped and said I would sit this one out, and go join my mom on that bench. But no, Kim wasn’t taking my refusal for an answer. Again, I fished for whatever excuse I could come up with, but Kim just took me by the arm and proceeded to lead me toward my nightmare. I’m sure I could have put up a bit more fight, but there was another reason that influenced my decision to give in. There was Kim, a middle aged woman with grey hair and a cast on her foot to boot, going off gallantly to ride this crazy coaster. And there was me, in my mid-20’s, young and in excellent physical shape. I knew that if I chickened out on this one, I’d never live it down. Kim was the kind of person who would not have let me.