Roller coaster ride anyone?

I’m scared of roller coasters. They legitimately freak me out. I will sit down and either:
a) scream the whole way or b) say nothing and be completely still, because I am afraid that I am going to die. Despite this, somehow I still manage to enjoy the adrenaline rush that comes along with the screaming. This said, I only realise I enjoyed it after I have come to the conclusion that I survived the ride. The first roller coaster I ever went on was one in Movie World aimed for six year olds. I was thirteen at the time…

I don’t know why, but roller coasters are so scary. I have never been able to completely understand the concept of “having fun” while you are being thrown around at the speed of light. You can’t see anything, because everything is either a blur or you have your eyes shut. The only things you can hear are people screaming or being violently ill in the seats behind you. You line up in queues for what seems like days just to get on a ride that lasts a minute. I probably could have walked the entire theme park three times in the period of time it takes to wait your turn. This is why they have never made sense to me. 

Three years later, however, I am proud to say that I have been forcefully dragged, pulled and pushed on to plenty more roller coasters after a holiday to America where we spent a few days in Disney World. 

I have come to realise that life is very much like a roller coaster. One day you can be so happy, then without warning, in the blink of an eye everything changes. It’s as if we are given a compulsory ticket to get on this crazy upside-down, curvy roller coaster we call ‘life’. There is no escaping it. Once you sit down, you are strapped in for good and you have to wait til it is over. 

If there is one thing I have learnt about my roller coaster ride so far, it is that I couldn’t have done it alone. Roller coasters aren’t fun without your friends beside you; there would be no one to potentially make deaf through the constant yelling. You need to be surrounded by other people in life for both support and encouragement. They are the ones screaming next to you; they make you feel better and help you remember that they are always going to be there for you, through the ups and downs.

But you also need to lower the handle bars. They keep you safe and protect you. God protects me. He looks after me and He is my handle bar. I can hold on to Him when I need Him the most. And you know what the best part is? Even if I throw my hands up in the air and scream the loudest, it’s okay, because He will always hold on to me. I have learnt that there is no reason to be scared of life’s roller coasters, because God will never let me go.

Keep smiling. x

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