A Community of Fear Conquerors

For Halloween the Ventura Community traveled to visit the San Diego Community.  Since the Peru Community doesn't leave until January, we met them there as well.  I was very sad that Chicago and Lawrence were unable to be there, but I was so excited to see San Diego and Peru.  It was a long week for the Ventura Community, but we decided to get up early on Saturday to be able to meet the other communities for a hike at Potato Chip Rock.  As you can see in the picture, Potato Chip Rock is a thin sliver that juts out over the valley.  Unfortunately you can't see the view or the path you take to get on to the chip.

After watching a few groups of people hang out over the side and do yoga poses on the rock, we decided to do community pictures due to heart palpitations of multiple community members.  Peru goes first and they crawl onto the rock.  It was then decided that we did not come all the way up the service road (side story, see below!) for us to only get community pictures.  As a klutzy, not graceful person who often trips and falls while running and has a shoulder that is prone to subluxation, I literally thought I would not make it onto Potato Chip Rock.  After all, you're talking about the girl that wiped out on the trolley tracks during orientation.  Whenever a situation like this comes about, I can see myself falling off the mountain or sliding down into a crevice I can't get out of.   The small miracle is not only did I make it onto Potato Chip Rock, but I also made it back to solid ground.

How I made it can be described in one word: community.  It was community members that helped me pull myself up on the first rock. Bridget literally talked me into taking a leap of faith onto the second rock, reminding me to lean forward.  During the picture we all held on, some for dear life and other to dear friends.  After the photo, Francis literally gave me a knee up to be able to pull myself up onto the rock to return to the first rock.  Sliding down onto solid ground and having my heart return to a normal rhythm, I thought that wasn't so bad.

Every single one of us has come to the AVs with some sort of fear.  Whether it be about moving away from home, living in community, at our respective service sites or something we haven't faced yet.   I hope that  we continue to be a community that builds each other up to conquer fears.

Side note story: Ventura and San Diego/Peru met at the hike and both ended up at the service road  up to Potato Chip Rock.  The service road was a paved, straight up hike while the other hike was a 4 mile slope up the mountain.  Not the first time the Ventura Community has hiked the wrong path and probably won't be the last time.