Sometimes You Have To Be Up Really High...

to see how small you really are.

-Felix Baumgartner, 10/14/2012

So here I am, 4:15 AM, laying wide awake in my bed.  Again.  I have not been able to fall asleep before 5 or 6 AM for like, the last two weeks.  Which means I sleep til 3.  Which means my whole day is wasted.  I've tried to set alarms so I will wake up early, hoping that by the time 9 or 10 rolls around, I will be ready to curl up in bed and pass out.  But, I either turn my alarms off in a sleepy stupor that I don't remember when I finally wake up or I just sleep right through them.  AH!  So frustrated.  Sleep problems aside, I just wanted to share some late night ramblings that might not make much sense when I read it over again tomorrow...

I know that a song has ignited something within me, or touched me in some way when listening to it gives me goosebumps.  That's what happened with this song, particularly when I heard it for the first time when Felix Baumgartner successfully landed in the middle of New Mexico after jumping from the edge of space.  It seems silly but I think I'll remember that moment forever.  Felix successfully pulling his chute, seeing his body become closer and closer to his shadow on Earth, him touching down and immediately dropping to his knees and throwing his fists in the air...man, that last image won't leave my mind for a while.  I'm embarrassed to admit it (and I was trying to hide it from my boyfriend, who(m?) I was watching the live stream with) but I definitely was overcome with emotion and teared up a little...okay a lot.  I blame the music that they timed perfectly at the landing.  And this was that music.

What a huge accomplishment, not only for Felix and his team, but for mankind as a whole.  I'm always so amazed at the limits people attempt to push themselves to, and even more amazed when it is successful.  It sounds suuuuuuper cliche, I know, but it really proves to me, once again, that if you only put your mind, time, and effort (and a whole lotta money as far as the Red Bull Stratos mission goes) into something, you can conquer your fears and overcome your limits and have something to be proud of.  It makes me that much more motivated to think of ways I can push myself past my comfort zones and accomplish something great.  If Felix can jump successfully from the edge of space, I'm pretty sure I can do whatever my heart leads me to do.