Sláinte

Up the path I pushed until finally, I reached a flat slab of stone forming the first plateau of the cliffs. The air was thin and whipped past my back urging me forward. As I inched closer to the edge my whole body quivered. The natural thrill that great height brings intensified as I gathered up the courage to lower my body to the ground and swing my legs over the edge. Immediately my breath quickened and pure exhilaration pumped through my veins like it never has. I could feel it pulsating in sync with my heart. I drew my eyes up to take in the view. Never has my heart lived in such equal abundance of fear and amazement. These majestic masses soar over 700 feet declaring their presence. The stratification of the rock reminds its visitors how these cliffs are the divine result of millions of years of formation. I tried to memorize the way the rare Irish sun spilled over the water below as I raised my arms to the side. The small waves crashed into rock far below me. It seemed as though the waves were trying desperately to break the cliff down. Relentlessly they knocked, the way a dissatisfied child bangs on a parent’s chest. The cliffs stood as a beacon of pride-unmoving and with unforgiving beauty.
My eyes began to well and I was unsure whether I could blame the whipping wind or the overwhelming sensation that I was experiencing the greatest moment I have lived. My heart pounded in my chest in a courageous rhythm. As I squinted into the vast ocean before me I felt as though I had freed some nasty inhibition that tried to convince me I was in over my head. But I knew, as I slowly retreated my shaky legs and inched back from the edge, I was exactly where I belonged.
Walking this time with a new sense of fulfillment, I got back on the trail and strutted higher. I paused and turned to look back at the cliffs. I could see the ledge where I had moments ago laid my body. Taking in the entire scene, rushing water, enormous cliffs, the wet grassy moss that lined the edges, I felt in awe knowing I made myself part of that. A smile crept across my wind burned cheeks as I took in one last glimpse and turned to make the trek back down. Each step I took reaffirmed a desire in me to search for that undeniable feeling of adventure; the feeling that you are not just being, but truly living. The ability to marvel at the world and have that invoke a feeling of happiness, loss, belonging, love…is at the foundation of what makes us human. I found that on the Cliffs of Moher.