⟟ Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona

When I first started walking the South Rim Trail, I overheard someone say, "A hiker died here recently. With the snow covered ground, you never really know what you're walking on."

The trail itself takes you close enough to the edge, so in some points you can only take so many steps off the trail before you're falling... and I had no interest in taking the gamble on what ground laid beneath the snow.

Plus, the view from the trail was more than enough.

... but then, I got to this part of the trail. There was a big flat rock between the trail and this rock. I stood there for a while, in the safe zone, taking it all in. As I did, a few people came and nonchalantly walked past me to stand and sit on this rock, seemingly unbothered. 

The couple that was sitting on the rock stood up and said, "It's really not that bad, there's another big flat rock down there you can't see so if you happen to fall, which you won't, you have a landing pad all around you, not too far below."

Another solo hiker and I shared a look as they said this, clearly questioning their idea of "not that bad."

He asked me if I wanted him to take my picture on the rock. I looked at him, looked at the rock, looked at my camera, looked at the rock... unsure if that was a risk I wanted to take. 

Hesitantly, I took my camera off my neck and handed it to the man, and said, "My mom would kill me for doing this... but if I'm doing it, we're in this together and you're doing it too."

So the stranger from Louisiana and I took turns being brave and I have no regrets.

Standing there, surrounded by the magnitude of the Grand Canyon in all its majestic beauty was such an overpowering feeling unlike anything I've ever experienced. I truly will never forget that feeling.

As he went onto the rock, there was a similar evolution. You could see the fear slowly soften as the moments passed with him standing there, until all that was left was just pure joy and amazement.

We agreed that the couple was right, it does look much worse than it really was. It reminded me that a lot of things we're scared of in life look and feel much worse than they actually are. 

Sometimes, what's on the other side of those fears isn't all the worst case scenarios you've been playing out in your head. 

Sometimes, what's on the other side of those fears is an unimaginable and indescribable feeling of being a l i v e... and I think that feeling is worth taking the risk.