Not Too Old to Try Something New
A story of three girls parasailing…
Last year, even though the pandemic was going on, my friend Stephanie, her new caregiver, Christina, and I went to Port Aransas (my happy place) to do a girl trip and take the ultimate excursion.
Stephanie set this up before the pandemic, paid for it, and we were determined to see it through. Our trip was planned for June, and after many checks into the parasailing trip and the hotel, the trip was going to happen!
You should know that I used to be Stepanie’s caregiver until my physical problems and family problems forced me to quit. She went through a few others before she found Christina, her best one yet!
Stephanie has a rare form of MS called Freiderichs Ataxia.
A debilitating disease, so opportunities for fun are well appreciated, so I refused to decline my invitation. For one, it required some help from me, which I’m always happy to give. Second, it was paid for, including the excursion, because she wanted me to share the experience with us as well.
So off we went in her specially equipped ramp van to have our little adventure. We agreed Christina would drive down, and I would drive back. That was hard for me (I’m a bit of a control freak), but it all worked out fine.
Stephanie is confined to a wheelchair and can no longer drive, but she used to! That’s one thing I love about her is that she is not scared of anything, and she has the best stories of all her experiences! She has taken cruises and everything!
We arrived in Port Aransas and set out to check into our hotel before looking for some dinner the first night. Everything was still on semi-lockdown, so we had to wear masks in many places. I know Port Aransas like the back of my hand, another reason she invited me to go, so we went to find something affordable to eat.
I struck out on the first two ideas, not realizing how much prices had gone up at my normal restaurants, so we finally secured some burgers at Bernies, which looked nothing like it used to before the pandemic.
We did have to burst Stephanie’s bubble a little when we found out their version of a beach wheelchair looked more like a small dune-buggy and would not fit in the van to transport it to the beach.
No problem, we made a beach chair work, and she had a splendid time. We also went shopping, and she got some things she wanted. We had a blast at the new coffee shop cheating on our diets with gelato and delicious paninis.
We ate seafood and had drinks at Moby Dick’s, although the wait was unbelievable.
Finally, the day came for the parasailing trip.
I cannot say enough good things about the fine folks that run that place. Stephanie being in a wheelchair was not even a problem. We waited on the dock while the previous boatload came back and unloaded, and then those wonderful guys literally picked her up out of the chair and carried her to a seat on the boat.
We squeezed in tight next to her so she wouldn’t fall, and off we went, getting our safety lesson on the way. Nervous but excited, it came our turn to load up. We were securely attached to a three-person swing of sorts, then the parachute opened as we sailed down the ship channel, and up we went. The view from up there was glorious, and Christina and I filmed the whole ride on the provided Go Pro included in the package.
The guys kept us up there for what felt like 30 minutes; I was starting to feel a little green around the gills after 15 minutes (I probably didn’t eat enough beforehand), and soon we could see the guys were also taking pictures.
They all went on my personal blog later; I just included a couple here. Stephanie really enjoyed it, and re-entry onto the boat was a breeze! That was the part I was mostly worried about since she cannot use her legs. However, the guys were right there to make sure she slid to a smooth landing, and they took her out of her harness.
We got out of ours, returned to our seats, and had fun watching the others on the boat go up into the sky. The guys took pictures of all of us looking like a shark was eating us; it was so much fun. They even dipped us down to touch our toes in the water before bringing us in for the landing.
When we got back to the dock, the guys lifted Stephanie back into her chair and lifted her and the whole chair onto the walkway so we could get her back to the van.
What sweet gentlemen they were, so of course we gave them a big tip!
For me, that was an experience of a lifetime; I do not know if I’ll ever get the chance to do it again. At the time, I was 59, but I didn’t let age stop me. That was a bucket list item, and now I can check it off. ;)
I’ll tell you another thing, I had dreams of skydiving as well, but this little excursion put a damper on that!
I’m not giving up on the idea totally, but I doubt it will be any time soon. And if I go, it will darn sure be tandom!!
