CONQUERING MY FEAR OF HEIGHTS - by Vijaya Schartz

FEARLESS FRIDAY

I am honored to have Vijaya on Fearless Friday today with a fun post. Read on:

I like to challenge myself, always did. To conquer my fears as a child, I forced myself to do whatever scared me the most. Eventually, I earned a reputation as a thrill-seeker and a daredevil. One fear I could never quite conquer, however, was my fear of heights. At a very young age, I remember clinging to the railing on the platform of the top catwalk of the jungle gym at summer camp. Despite a good balance, coordination, and athletic dispositions, I couldn't get the courage to walk it. Later, as an adult, I could not stand at the edge of a cliff without feeling the strong pull of gravity buckling my knees, dizzying my head, thwarting my balance, threatening to bring me down. The pictures of workers having lunch perched on the steel beams of a skyscraper under construction made me sick to my stomach.

Since then, I went through therapy with a hypnotherapist. She led me through past life regression. Apparently, my fear of heights is rooted in how I died in my previous life. This hypothesis resonates with me. According to what I saw and said under hypnosis, I was a Native American woman, banished from the tribe for giving birth to a child from a white man. The tribe killed the child then forced me off a cliff. I can still smell the fear, the blood, feel the rage directed at me, the anger. I remember the warriors advancing upon me, forcing me back at spear point. I remember tripping backwards, the endless fall. But most of all, I remember the pain, as my broken body lay bloody on the rocks at the bottom of the precipice, among animal carcasses. I was still alive and suffered for days, abandoned, alone, in unbearable pain, before the end came.

To confirm this new information, I researched the tribe from the images seared in my subconscious and discovered it was the "Black Feathers" a tribe of the Crow Nation. And I recognized the white cliffs with the trees hanging from the vertical walls on photographs, and images of driving buffalo to stampede off the cliffs, a hunting method favored by the Crow... in Alberta.

That ghastly death would certainly explain my fear of heights today. I did some exercises, forcing myself to look down while walking at the edge of my second story patio. My reaction to the heights faded somewhat, but when I stopped the exercises, the fear returned. It's rooted in a very deep emotional trauma.

During a white river rafting trip in the Grand Canyon, on the Colorado River, we went exploring on foot, and our guide led us to a platform at the top of a cliff. As usual, I couldn't walk to the edge or look down. But below was a deep water pond, and water is my favorite element. The game was to jump off the cliff, into the water, wearing a life jacket (as we all did on this expedition). They asked for volunteers. I decided to attack my fear of heights, like I did other fears as a child. I raised my hand.

Since I could not look down, I didn't get to the edge. I took as many steps back as the flat area allowed, then started running as fast as I could, yelling at the top of my lungs. Heart pounding, I ran off the cliff into a free fall. I was airborne. What a thrill! Landing in the water was invigorating. On the picture, my jump doesn't look that scary because of the angle, but it was about five stories high, and for me, quite a victory.

I don't know if I would do it again, but I proved to myself that I could do it, and, although I still get rubber legs when I look down from the edge of a drop, I know I can master my fear in a pinch.

In my present life, I write fearless characters. In Checkmate, the hero's teenage daughter is also afraid of heights, and she has to climb the open stairs of the Eiffel Tower in Paris to rescue her father. I could really tap into my fear of heights in that scene. One of the scariest for me to write.

I write strong heroines in science fiction romance, and medieval fantasy settings. Girls with guns or swords, daring, fearless, with human flaws and a big heart. You can find my eBooks everywhere, and my paperbacks on Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Wishing you all, a Fearless Friday.
Vijaya Schartz
Blasters, Swords, Romance with a Kick
http://www.vijayaschartz.com
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/author/vijayaschartz 
B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/vijaya-schartz
FB: https://www.facebook.com/vijaya.schartz
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Vijayaschartz

Straw Bites and Two-Year-Old Delights

Tortuga Thursday 

In 2012, on the plains of Northern Arizona, two families joined forces and began the trials and tribulations of building a small family farm with nothing in the bank but love.

Frank and I spent some time on the farm. Tortuga has been a pretty mellow place so we've been hanging out in Tonto Basin - Frank fishing and I've been writing. But it was time to do a little work on the farm, celebrate Sadi's second birthday then dog sit while Lance, Christie and Sadi went to Disneyland and the beach for a week. We learned a few things.

I learned either there are stinging bugs I couldn't see in the straw or the straw is the culprit. My knuckles are still swollen and itchy from some sort of mishap while weeding garlic. And I was wearing gloves. My next weeding day, a couple of weeks from now, I'll be careful to not rest my fists in the straw. So weird.

That was one of the things I learned while weeding garlic. The other thing I learned when weeding 300 foot rows is to look behind...see how much was accomplished...because looking at what still stretched out ahead was very discouraging.

Sadi's birthday party at the pizza parlor was  a blast. Her cousin Eli was there. It's

amazing to watch the differences in how boys and girls play even as early as two years old.

Frank learned making repairs around the house is tedious work. Well, he always knew that but after three trips to the hardware store for the same door part, he was convinced.

Some repairs, like plumbing, are best left to experts. The mainline plugged.  Yes, it was an eventful week.

Sadi came back from California with a cold. My granddaughter has most definitely embraced the typical two year old personality. Add a cold to that. She had her stinker moments. But she's sweet as pie the rest of the time. If I'd forgotten, I relearned just how wonderful a two year old can be.

And this guy is a new addition since last we were on Tortuga Flats Farm.

Mud and Mishaps

Tortuga Thursday 

In 2012, on the plains of Northern Arizona, two families joined forces and began the trials and tribulations of building a small family farm with nothing in the bank but love.

Our road is a river

The biggest news for this Tortuga Thursday is mud and more mud. The rain and snow started in November. Since the first of the year, we've had more rain than in the last five years for this time of year. Since our road is dirt and so packed down, drainage is about non-existent.

Got a call from our great neighbor, Eunice. She said she had eggs for us and a present for Sadi's birthday. Hard to believe she's turning two today. Eunice also mentioned she has baby goats just a few days old. I couldn't resist trying to get over to their farm with Sadi to see the babies. Sadi's excitement was worth the chance of getting stuck. And we did. I didn't even make it to the end of our property line. So, Dave and Eunice hopped on the tractor and he pulled me out. He no sooner got me high and dry when an SUV up the road was spinning his tires. Dave saved the day. I think he thoroughly enjoyed it. Sadi had to miss the baby goats but the adventure was fun, especially since Dave let her sit on his tractor.

Sadi feeding PJ

Our newest addition, the baby kitty, now has a name - PJ. This is for Puck Junior. Lance had a cat for years named Puck which he adopted while playing Hockey in Minnesota...hence the name. This kitty looks so much like Puck, he has been named as his Junior. He's an outside cat but has a temporary home in our messy garage because it's so cold out.

Greenhouse veggies are keeping us happy. Garlic is sprouting. Now let's hope for

Garlic

no rain until the roads dry out!

Greenhouse onions and greens

Greenhouse Parsley

 

Greenhouse Chard

Play Games, Discover Books, Win Prizes

MUSE MONDAY

http://www.theromancereviews.com/event.php?prize=1

All month long The Romance Reviews is celebrating their anniversary. And you can score!!! Not only can you have fun playing games, but you have a chance for some great prizes. And along the way you'll get introduced to some great books and authors. You could run into authors whose books you already love and you're sure to meet some new ones.

Here's the link to start the fun: http://www.theromancereviews.com/event.php?prize=1

My game is up on March 19th so be sure to log on that day. But start early and play late. You'll have fun and score big!

Finding Time When There is None by Alicia Dean

MUSE MONDAY

From left to right, Krysta, Amanda, Kathy, Alicia

Please welcome my guest, Alicia Dean, to Muse Monday!

I am an editor for The Wild Rose Press, a freelance editor, and an author. With a full-time, outside the home job. And, I’m involved in various groups, social media, writing groups, etc. So, finding time to write is a bit of a challenge. My goal is to arise at 5 a.m., two hours before I normally do, in order to squeeze in some writing time. Unfortunately, I don’t usually sleep well, so making myself climb out of bed instead of grabbing those extra few hours takes more will power than I possess. I try to reserve my weekends for marathon writing sessions, but of course, with family and friend obligations, I don’t always have weekends to myself. I also have an incurable condition ‘Can’tSayNoItis.’ So, anytime someone asks a favor or presents a new project to me, before I even consider my schedule and the impossibility of adding one more thing to it, I say, “Yes, of course!” (Don’t tell anyone, if word gets out, I might be swamped with requests ;)). I stumbled across a couple of sayings that I intended to take on as my mantras: ‘Yes makes less’ and ‘No is a complete sentence.’ So far, they aren’t working for me, but I plan to start practicing them…if I can find the time.

What is your schedule like? Do you have tips for managing your time you would like to share?

Fortunately, I was able to find time to complete a writing project with three of my writer friends. The four of us meet each Friday at a Martini Lounge in Edmond, Oklahoma. From those get-togethers, came the idea to write stories centered around a similar establishment. We call the series Martini  Club 4. Our first offerings are set in the 1920’s, and mine is called Ruined.

Blurb:

 She vowed she’d be no man’s doxy, but fate had other plans... 

After the Earl of Goodwin attempts to force himself on her, housemaid Eliza Gilbert flees England for New York, hoping to build a better life. But the land of opportunity proves as harsh as the London docks, and she finds herself in a situation more dreadful than the one she escaped. 

When Vince Taggart ’s childhood friend disappears, he heads to New York in search of her and meets Eliza, a woman with a less than honorable reputation. Inexplicably captivated, Vince can’t force himself to stay away, especially when he learns Eliza may be the key to finding his missing friend.

Excerpt:

The whole idea sickened him. What kind of pathetic excuse for a man would have to buy a woman’s company? In spite of the bad taste the situation left in his mouth, he tried to appear interested and impressed. He scanned the room. His heart gave a little bump when he spotted Eliza from Club 501.

He tilted his glass toward her. “What about that one?” He hoped his voice sounded more casual than he felt. The idea of spending a night of passion with a dame like her… Nah, he needed to waylay those kinds of thoughts. He wasn’t the type to buy a prostitute. And he was here for one reason only.

Oscar followed the direction he’d pointed. “Oh yes, good choice. Eliza is a quite a prize. And quite a looker. She’s new, but she’s a sweet one.”

An odd sense of protectiveness rose. At the club, he’d sensed something vulnerable and innocent, even though he’d been told she was one of Oscar’s girls. She just didn’t seem the type. When their gazes met that first time, he thought some kind of current—some kind of connection had passed between them. But apparently, she was just really good at her job—enticing men.

Vince nodded. “I’ll take her.”

*** Available for pre-order, and through the end of February, for only 99¢ each - Regular price will be $2.99 beginning March 1!

Amazon pre-order buy link:

http://www.amazon.com/Ruined-Martini-Club-4-1920s-ebook/dp/B00RICLM2I/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1421883759&sr=1-1&keywords=martini+club+4

Find all four at this link:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=martini%20club%204&sprefix=martini+club+4%2Cstripbooks