I have been taking trampoline classes for over a decade. Beyond learning cool gymnastic skills and improving my aerial awareness, trampoline — and the sport of flying trapeze — never fails to give me new insights into life.
In a recent trampoline practice, I learned an unexpected new skill: how to throw the crash mat onto the trampoline.
The crash mat is a soft foam mat that gets thrown onto the trampoline bed to soften the landing. It’s helpful when learning certain skills that can otherwise lead to hard landings.
Usually, my coach throws in the mat.
In this case, however, the coach asked me to throw it in because the other student was working on a skill requiring safety lines.
The coach couldn’t throw in the mat while pulling the safety lines.
So I got to learn a new skill.
As it turns out, it’s harder than it looks. The mat is heavy and awkward to slide onto the trampoline bed. I had to focus intently on the student’s timing so I could throw in the mat at exactly the right time.
I felt a lot of pressure.
The Value of Emotional Support
My coach tried to ease my nerves by reminding me that in this case the purpose of the mat was to provide “emotional support.”
Because the student was in safety lines, this was merely an extra security blanket.
But just because it’s extra doesn’t mean it’s not useful — or necessary.
Everyone wants a soft landing.
Having been on the other side of this many times, I know how it feels to have that extra cushion of the mat even when I’m in safety lines.
When we trust we’ll be safe in landing, we can give ourselves permission to push harder and even to fail.
The structure and comfort to create security to push our edge.
You may never train to learn trampoline skills, but the same principle applies to other endeavors — whether physical activities or your work.
Sometimes a little structure and security — even if it’s emotional support — can help us find the courage we need to push our edge and take the next leap.
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