| Biographical Non-Fiction posted August 18, 2020 |
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They Can Kill You But They Can't Eat You
Trust Me You'll Enjoy The View
by Earl Corp
Your Greatest Fear Contest Winner
I realized my greatest fear when I was seven-years-old. We visited Kinzua Dam in PA. The dam is 180 feet high, and when I got near the rail my stomach started doing back flips, I didn't like it at all.
As I got older this became more profound. I didn’t think it was fun to climb trees, I would freeze on the second rung of ladders, and I refused to climb the rope in gym class.
When I went in the Army things would change. One of the first lessons I learned was it’s ok to be afraid of something, but it’s not ok to let your fear prevent you from doing your job.
I also learned it’s easier to do something you’re afraid of if you’re in a large group of people doing the very same thing like I was in jump school. It’s a lot harder to refuse to do something, like jumping out of aircraft, when your manhood is on the line.
You might ask why I volunteered for the Airborne if I was deathly afraid of heights. That’s easy, my dad was Airborne and it was my goal to be a better man than my dad, which required me going to jump school.
I never got to the point where I enjoyed heights, but I was able to function in them. I will admit all my jumps were night jumps, I kept my eyes closed.
I served in a Long Range Reconnaissance Company in Germany. One day we were rappelling from a 60 foot air traffic control tower.
When it came my turn, the Ranger who was acting as rappel master noticed I was shaky when I climbed over the tower rail.
“What kind of a paratrooper are you if you’re scared of 60 feet? You must be a coward,” he said.
“Nope, a coward wouldn’t be up here doing this,” I said.
I still don’t like heights, but I’m not nearly as afraid of them as I used to be. In fact, I’m more scared of snakes than heights now, but that’s a story for another day.
I realized my greatest fear when I was seven-years-old. We visited Kinzua Dam in PA. The dam is 180 feet high, and when I got near the rail my stomach started doing back flips, I didn't like it at all.
As I got older this became more profound. I didn’t think it was fun to climb trees, I would freeze on the second rung of ladders, and I refused to climb the rope in gym class.
When I went in the Army things would change. One of the first lessons I learned was it’s ok to be afraid of something, but it’s not ok to let your fear prevent you from doing your job.
I also learned it’s easier to do something you’re afraid of if you’re in a large group of people doing the very same thing like I was in jump school. It’s a lot harder to refuse to do something, like jumping out of aircraft, when your manhood is on the line.
You might ask why I volunteered for the Airborne if I was deathly afraid of heights. That’s easy, my dad was Airborne and it was my goal to be a better man than my dad, which required me going to jump school.
I never got to the point where I enjoyed heights, but I was able to function in them. I will admit all my jumps were night jumps, I kept my eyes closed.
I served in a Long Range Reconnaissance Company in Germany. One day we were rappelling from a 60 foot air traffic control tower.
When it came my turn, the Ranger who was acting as rappel master noticed I was shaky when I climbed over the tower rail.
“What kind of a paratrooper are you if you’re scared of 60 feet? You must be a coward,” he said.
“Nope, a coward wouldn’t be up here doing this,” I said.
I still don’t like heights, but I’m not nearly as afraid of them as I used to be. In fact, I’m more scared of snakes than heights now, but that’s a story for another day.
As I got older this became more profound. I didn’t think it was fun to climb trees, I would freeze on the second rung of ladders, and I refused to climb the rope in gym class.
When I went in the Army things would change. One of the first lessons I learned was it’s ok to be afraid of something, but it’s not ok to let your fear prevent you from doing your job.
I also learned it’s easier to do something you’re afraid of if you’re in a large group of people doing the very same thing like I was in jump school. It’s a lot harder to refuse to do something, like jumping out of aircraft, when your manhood is on the line.
You might ask why I volunteered for the Airborne if I was deathly afraid of heights. That’s easy, my dad was Airborne and it was my goal to be a better man than my dad, which required me going to jump school.
I never got to the point where I enjoyed heights, but I was able to function in them. I will admit all my jumps were night jumps, I kept my eyes closed.
I served in a Long Range Reconnaissance Company in Germany. One day we were rappelling from a 60 foot air traffic control tower.
When it came my turn, the Ranger who was acting as rappel master noticed I was shaky when I climbed over the tower rail.
“What kind of a paratrooper are you if you’re scared of 60 feet? You must be a coward,” he said.
“Nope, a coward wouldn’t be up here doing this,” I said.
I still don’t like heights, but I’m not nearly as afraid of them as I used to be. In fact, I’m more scared of snakes than heights now, but that’s a story for another day.
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Writing Prompt Using 500 words or less, describe what your greatest fear in life is and why. |
Your Greatest Fear Contest Winner |
 Recognized |
Ihad a platoon sergeant who used to say, "It's a small price to be America's finest." Well I paid and paid. I hope you enjoy this, be kind.
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