1 . I was young and determined to take an adventurous trip. But _________ nearly 875 yards out of a cable car (缆车), with a rubber band attached to my ankles, was not part of my plan. It’s _________ how intentions can change.

Staring over the _________ of the cable car, my heart was in my throat. I _________ heard the others behind me counting down. How could I have let myself be _________ into this? It was crazy!

My palms were _________, and my heart was pounding.

“Five.” They started the _________ for the second time, ignoring my useless protests.

“Four.”

“Three.”

“Two.” In that instant I _________ my mind a million times and came to the final _________ that there was no way I could allow myself to leap out of the cable car, suspended so high off the ground.

__________ my ankles please!

Then...

“One.”

I let go and leaped out as far as I could. If there had been time to __________ it for another second, I would have stopped myself. But instead, I jumped.

It felt as if all my fears, insecurities, and doubts were being let go. An enormous sense of __________ rose up in me. As I fell toward the earth __________ first, I saw my new friends waiting for me on the ground and could hear them __________ my victory over fear.

Jumping out of the cable car put me on __________ of the world, and that’s where I am determined to remain for the rest of my life.

2 . One day, Marga asked if I would join her in hiking to Base Camp at the foot of Mount Qomolangma to celebrate her 60th birthday. I _________ the opportunity.

We met our guide Achut Pandey in Kathmandu. He was a man of joy and _________, who had been to Base Camp over 100 times.

When we left Namche Bazaar, we took the Three High Passes route, which is less-traveled, longer and more _________. The temperatures ranged from the teens to below 0°F. We were nearly _________. When we were done with dinner, we _________ ourselves to our sleeping bags. While we _________ were able to down a couple of eggs and a piece of toast, the higher we went, the less we _________. Eventually, it was a lot of _________ to just eat a bowl of rice. The altitude _________ us in other ways too. As our appetites slowed, so did our ____________. Renjo La Pass, the first pass, was supposed to take eight hours. It took 12.

Achut’s faith in us was never ____________. He greeted us each day with a ____________ “good morning.” Before we ____________ Base Camp, he carried our packs and skillfully negotiated our moods and capabilities. We trusted him as he ____________ us, confident and strong, up and down icy, ____________ and sometimes narrow paths.

Thanks to Achut, I made it, at 65.