FLOP-BARBLE-SPLAT: Adventures in Rope Swing Jumping
I just got back from an afternoon on the river, and I'll tell you what... I am feeling pretty darn proud of myself. Because today, I did a thing. A thing I have NEVER done before. Ever. In my whole life.
You know I love me a good adventure, but even I have my limits. And rope-swings are one of them.
They LOOK EASY enough, but dang, you gotta have some kinda hand-arm-core strength/coordination to hold on to the rope and swing, less you want to FLOP-BARBLE-SPLAT yourself into the water like an old wet towel.
I've always had strong legs... but strong arms? Not so much.
I've never dared to jump from a rope swing because...
What if I can't hold on.
What if I can't get my legs up.
What if I make a fool of myself.
I've paddled this section of river before, and never once did I notice those darn rope swings. Outta mind, outta site. Once I put them on my no-way-never list, my smarty-pants brain was able to NOT SEE THEM whenever I traveled this section of river.
Until today, when my 7 year old son about fell out of his seat when he saw them. He wanted to give it a go, and I thought to myself, GOOD FOR HIM! He's perfect for this kind of sport. He's strong. He's agile. He's coordinated. He's GOT THIS.
He crawled out of his boat, stood on the top of the rock, grabbed onto the rope... and froze.
He couldn't do it. I cheered for him. I told him I believed in him. I coached him.
But he was too afraid.
Then it came... MAMA, I'LL DO IT IF YOU DO IT.
Shit.
A few years ago I decided that whenever a NO-WAY-NEVER opportunity popped up in front of me, I needed to stop, listen to what my inner-yammerings had to say, intentionally let those thoughts go, and then do the damn thing.
Well, my default inner yammering was saying... your arms are just too damn skinny to carry your ass over the water, so you best say HELL NO, because if you try, it is NOT going to be pretty.
I can be such an asshole to myself.
I laid those tracks probably 25 years ago, and they were STILL THERE, trying to sabotage me.
I don't let myself talk to myself that way anymore. Nowadays, I'm on my body's team. I believe in my body. I know my body will do ITS BEST, so I refuse to berate it for not being THE BEST.
With nothing on the line but my ego... I hopped off my paddleboard, and gave it a go.
CLICK IMAGE BELOW TO WATCH THE 15 SECOND VIDEO.
I have watched this video at least a dozen times, and it cracks me up every single time I see it. I mean, did you see my landing?!?!? Not exactly graceful.
But you know what, I didn't get up there to be graceful. I got up there to show my ZZ what BRAVERY looked like.
And I did it. I jumped off that rock, swung from that damn rope swing, got myself a serious case of rope burn, and fell FLOP-BARBLE-SPLAT right into the water.
All of my fears came true. And I didn't care one bit.
I was so PROUD of myself!
I know that sounds kind of cheesy. It's not like I was 30 feet in the air, staring death in the eyeballs or anything. But I was staring WHAT-IF-I-FAIL in the eyeballs, and that right there... that's something.
Afterwards, my husband said to me... good thing you changed your pants all those years ago, Stasia. And I laughed. Every single time I do something brave, that's what he says to me. Because he knows that changing my pants, changed my life.
It's probably hard to understand the connection between changing my pants, and finding the courage to jump off a rope swing, but I'll tell you what, they are inextricably connected.
I've spent years flexing my brave muscle in my closet, always pushing up against my boundaries, kicking up to my growing edge, challenging every no-way-never I come upon. When I first started on this journey, lipstick was on my no-way-never list. So were sequins, dresses, shorts, crop-tops, cowgirl boots, headscarves, big earrings, and BIKINIS.
Everyday I flex my BRAVE MUSCLE. Everyday my BRAVE MUSCLE gets stronger.
Not just in one area of my life, but in ALL AREAS OF MY LIFE.
That's how BRAVERY works.
You wanna be more adventurous? More creative? More feisty? More bold? More grounded? More fierce? More YOU? Then practice CULTIVATING BRAVERY in your closet.
Because SHOWING UP and LIVING YOUR BEST LIFE has everything to do with BRAVERY. And your closet is hands-down one of the best places to practice.
You just have to dare.
You have to DARE share your ideas. Speak your truth. Stand firm. Have your voice be heard. BE SEEN.
THIS IS THE WORK OF STYLE SCHOOL.
If you can SEE your BIGGEST MOST BEAUTIFUL LIFE up ahead of you, and it's just out of reach because you don't quite dare... NOW IS THE TIME to join THE SEPTEMBER SESSION OF STYLE SCHOOL.
There are less than 25 spots available. Style School will SELL OUT. Once I reach capacity, I will CLOSE REGISTRATION. Class starts on Monday, September 14th.
xo Stasia
PS. ZZ didn't need to see his mama "nail" her rope swing jump. He just needed to see her dare.