“You are not invincible!”

That’s the phrase I have heard all too often from my parents every time I do something they deem “reckless” or “dangerous.” I mean, what’s dangerous about going to get Krispie Kreme by yourself at 1 a.m., or swimming to the second sandbar in the ocean when a red flag is out? (Please note my sarcasm.)

It’s the last example that inspires what I’m about to say. The other day I was reading an interview with a shark expert explaining why there are so many shark attacks occurring right now. Anyway, his best advice for staying safe at the beach was to simply drive safely.

I wouldn’t say I’m a crazy adventurous gal, but I do sometimes take perhaps irrational risks. My reason being I’m going to die eventually anyway, so let’s just go for it. Horrible I know, but let me explain.

As technology advances and we learn more, the “ignorance is bliss” mindset we once had consequently diminishes. Not at all saying that knowledge isn’t good and that safety isn’t something to take into consideration when making a decision, but rather, don’t let the fear that springs from knowledge keep you from living.

Life is only lived once. YOLO, amiright? But seriously, you get one shot at this. One shot to make something of yourself. One chance to feel that rush that comes from riding that roller coaster. One chance to feel the power of the wave that knocks you off balance when you’re not paying attention.

I was given the opportunity to go through a trial Air Force test at an army post once (random I know, but it was for learning purposes) and part of that was jumping off a 60-foot platform. I was attached to a harness, but I was still a nervous wreck. The closer I got to the top, the more my heart raced. When I was up there, I was gripping the rail because if I saw the ground, then it all suddenly became real. I was about to jump with nothing but gravel to break my fall on the off chance that my harness malfunctioned. They buckled me and asked me to lean back into the harness, which ultimately required me to be leaning off the edge with my back toward the ground and my face up. The next instruction was to slowly walk my feet down the edge of the 3-foot wide platform. I was paralyzed. I looked at my instructor with wide eyes, having absolutely no clue how to take a step or even to breathe, really. The fear was overwhelming. At this point, though, I had to do it. Too many people were at the bottom watching me to walk away. So, I took a deep breath, made the instructor reassure me that I would not die, and I went for it. I landed, safely, thank God, and walked away happy that I did it but completely OK with never doing it again.

The rush coming down from that platform was incredible. The fear was sickening. But honestly, it’s that same rush that makes you feel invincible and that same fear that reminds you that you’re not. Combine the two, and it makes you feel alive! When people ask me what the best moment of my life is or what my favorite memory is, I wouldn’t pick the time when I stayed on the ground watching my peers conquer their fears, or the time when I stayed on the shore with my sister for fear of being attacked by a shark. No! I would say the time I jumped off a platform or the time I spent laughing at how the waves were just absolutely beating the heck out of my sister and me.

Things happen in this world. Scary things and dangerous things. But good and exciting things happen to. Did my sister and I go out too far for a red flag? Maybe so. Was my dad thinking logically when he told us to come in because “we are not invincible”? Yes. It’s the moments when I get to overcome overwhelming fear that I am more alive than ever.

Fear is not synonymous with death or danger or any of the words that keep us from doing something a little crazy. We are humans. We do not get to live forever, which means we do not get to live moments again or have certain opportunities again. Take the risk. Swim to that second sand bar (when the flags declare it’s safe, of course), jump from that plane, buckle into that harness. Don’t live your life merely watching others experience life. Make your life full of moments worth retelling.

So no, you are not invincible and you are not immortal, but hey, if we were, where would the fun in that be?