My mum did a skydive a couple of years ago as a birthday present to herself. I thought she was so, so brave and also totally bonkers. At the time, I really wished I was more like her, as I would have loved to have the courage to jump out of a plane. However, the thought of it made me feel sick. Yet, here I am today…60 days away from jumping out of an aeroplane myself. My thought is – If my mum can do it, so can I!
I have always loved helping others and really want to make a difference to someone’s life. However, I have never been involved in raising money for a good cause. So, a few months ago something just hit me and I decided I wanted to just go for it…and what better way than doing the most outrageous thing I could think of – like jumping out of a plane?! A charity walk or run just wouldn’t do.
My chosen charity is Mind, a great charity that supports people who face mental health problems. Their ethos is: “We believe no-one should have to face a mental health problem alone”. Every year, one in four of us will experience a mental health problem. But hundreds of thousands of people are still struggling.
This jump is very personal to me for many reasons. Some of you may already know that I suffer from anxiety. I have been realising the difficulty of overcoming certain things in life and I feel that things aren’t always manageable when dealing with them alone. This has helped me understand the complexity of the mind and, in my own way, relate to others suffering from much worse.
Further, my auntie Alexis Burns passed away last year and she suffered from mental health problems most of her life. I would like to jump in memory of my aunty Alex, on behalf of the whole family. Alex, you were one of the kindest, most thoughtful people I have ever known and you had the biggest heart. This jump is for you.
Finally, as I have a growing fear of heights amongst a few other fears, my big plan is to face them all at once and prove to myself that I can do anything, no matter how scary it may seem.
My boyfriend Mike is dreading this jump as are my family I am sure, although they have all been really supportive – Thank you for that. I know Alex would probably gasp out of both fear and amazement at how “brave” I am. I can tell you all now, I will be crying the entire way down. 🙂
I would really appreciate your support and hope you can help me meet my minimum target of £500 – anything you have to offer, no matter how little would be greatly appreciated. Every little helps. 😉
I will leave you all with this lovely quote I found.
“If you surrender to the wind, you can ride it.” – Toni Morrison
You will be able to donate – following this link. Thank you in advance. 🙂
Serendipity 
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