Perceptions of your relatives changed, or same?

[ScottyInAus 0]

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When someone i know comes up with the 'perfectly good aroplane routine' i usually answer with even the best go wrong, and who is going to be the one who's most likely to survive....... that made them think

I just show them pictures of our Navajo that crashed and say "We're the smart ones, we got out..."

Cheers,
Jason.

[BannanaGirl 0]

My brother refuses to sign for a tandem for my nephew, who I've lived with all his life. He's disgusted I encourage my nephew's interest, because of the number of funerals I've attended in the past 17 years (two of which he also attended, having known the victims). I've stopped bringing it up, but nephew turns 18 next year and so far is still keen.***

My brother is fine with me doing it now...and his son who is 13 wants to do one for his 16th which he will let him do as a present. But ironically it is another family member who is flipping out about this...saying how sad it is that a 16 year old does'nt have enough joy in their lives so they feel the need to throw themselves out of an aeroplane. They have called me irresponsible and much worse at times because I have a young child.

It does make me feel quite confussed at times if it is the right thing to be doing....becasue when someone who has no idea what they are talking about starts ranting on at you it can trigger all those little doubts you push back into the back of your mind, the place it has to go in order to do anything worthwhile in this life. I have had several occasions I have felt quite twisted up by anothers words.

Now I have selective hearing....and I tend not to talk about it with people who do not skydive anymore (family included), unless they ask me and are genuinely interested.

So have my opinions changed...yes and I guess theirs have of me also.

[JeepDiver 0]

Mom says I'm still the same selfish sonofabitch I've always been. No mothers day card for her.

[Mike111 0]

lol

[Eiley 0]

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Mike111:
I never understand why somepeople just blast it. I never do

My brother does not 'just blast it'. He's concerned for his son because he has watched me go to numerous funerals of young people over the years, including two people who lived with me, my brother and my nephews. He's actually making a pretty informed decision with the information he has readily available to him.

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Andy908
If your nephew goes in or is permanently maimed, are you prepared for the family blaming you for it forever?

Although my family would not take it out on me, I couldn't live with it myself, especially if I felt he was just jumping because I convinced him to. It's not like I can claim I didn't know it could happen.

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When I was newer in the sport, I’d try to recruit others to join in. Not any more, especially not younger adults, i.e., the kids of friends & relatives my age. The reason is simple: shit does happen skydiving, and if something happened to one of them, I’d basically be blamed for it the rest of my life. No thanks.

Ditto. But now I'm in the awkward position of my nephew being about to turn 18 and still wanting to do it, even though I never bring it up any more. He wants a course for his birthday. I'm not going to buy it for him. If he truly wants to do it for himself, he will find a way.

nothing to see here

[somethinelse 0]

Initially the folks thought it was amusing, but when I continued they acted like they were disgusted with my "waste of time and money."

My Dad's no longer living, both he and (now) Mom eventually came to accept it, and Mom has come to begrudgingly admire me for it- altho she won't admit it!

My brothers and sisters are split in how they regard me for what I enjoy to do "outa a perfectly good aeroplane"

[yamtx73 0]

When I first started going thru AFF my mother would ask where my life insurance policy was... this past weekend when she came over I caught her reading my log book, then she started asking questions about the entries... yes, their perceptions do change but I doubt she'll ever come out to watch...

The only naturals in this sport shit thru feathers...

[DottieBear 0]

My mom is actually getting better and better as I progress...when I just started she was SO nervous about it. But as I went through AFF and told her of the time taken to teach proper technique and the concern for the students(ie, times I was grounded due to wind, or when I repeated a level because my turns weren't great), she became much more comfortable with it. She even came to watch me once!

I've never tried to sugarcoat that it is extremely dangerous, and that I could get injured. Instead, I honestly explain to her the steps that are taken to AVOID getting in a situation where I could injured...that I read the incident reports and try to learn from them, that I am not doing anything risky, and that I respect and listen to my instructors. She still worries if I don't call her on a day she knows I went to the dz, but over-all, she's gotten much better.

My dad....well, I just avoid talking to him about it

~Dottie

“Everything looks perfect from far away.”
Postal Service, Such Great Heights

[kirrz 0]

My mom is awesome about it. She knows me too well and she knows that if I want to do something, I'll go out and curb my curiousity regardless. I was chatting with her a few jumps ago and telling her about my door fear and she was actually talking me through the fear and telling me how I will eventually overcome it...

I showed both her and my sister some of my DVDs last week and she loved it. My sister on the other hand, after watching the exit says 'where's the rope'? I tell her there's no rope.. and she was like 'what??? so you jump without being attached to anything???'. She just finds it amusing and thinks I'm nuts.

My dad was completely against it at the start. I tried to inform him about all the gear, my reasons for doing it and went and got a job so I could show him I was serious and pay for it. He isn't interested in talking about it or watching the DVDs but it's not a taboo subject. He doesn't discourage me but he doesn't encourage me in any way either. It's a pretty dramatic turn around.

I initially thought I would have to lie and hide that I'm jumping but I'm so much happier and more comfortable with the fact that they know..

[deltablue 0]

My dad's reaction to my first tandem made at 33 was at first the typical "have you lost your friggin' mind" "you're gonna WHAT?" type of thing.... but then he started telling me stories of doing a few low altitude static line jumps in the military during the 1960's. When I explained the whole process and how it was a "tad" ( hehe) higher than he had jumped from and a lot more freefall he got really quiet , then said "son , you've got more balls than your ol man" lol

in reality , he was nervous obviously , but after getting a copy of that video he still brags to his friends to this day about it :) the guy couldn't be prouder lol

he still asks when I'm going to get back into the sport. I hope really soon.

~He who looks outside his own heart dreams, he who looks inside his own heart awakens - Carl Jung~

My Space

[sixtysevengt5oo 0]

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My brother refuses to sign for a tandem for my nephew, who I've lived with all his life. He's disgusted I encourage my nephew's interest, because of the number of funerals I've attended in the past 17 years

It would be one thing if your family was supportive, but you've made it clear they're not. If your nephew goes in or is permanently maimed, are you prepared for the family blaming you for it forever?
When I was newer in the sport, I’d try to recruit others to join in. Not any more, especially not younger adults, i.e., the kids of friends & relatives my age. The reason is simple: shit does happen skydiving, and if something happened to one of them, I’d basically be blamed for it the rest of my life. No thanks.

I've always had a little bit of trouble understanding this idea, why do we decide that we shouldnt encourage something that we believe someone else will enjoy for the fear of other blaming us. We encourage people to drive, people die driving, we encourage people to play sport, people die and are maimed playing sports, we encourage people to scuba dive, more people die scuba diving than skydiving. When you encourage something, in no way can any fault be placed on you, in the end it is the other individuals choice about what to do, whether to try it or not.



Aside from all that, yeah my mom thought i was an idiot after my first tandem, and a year later she was going through tough times, and i was going again, and she decided she was going to go do something crazy and stupid, so she jumped, understood why i loved it so much and payed for my AFF 2 days later as my b-day present. Everone else in the fam still dunno what for i jump outa perfectly good airplane. My grandpaw when i showed him pictures, strait faced and seriously asked me, "what happend to the plane?"

[Eiley 0]

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I've always had a little bit of trouble understanding this idea, why do we decide that we shouldnt encourage something that we believe someone else will enjoy for the fear of other blaming us. We encourage people to drive, people die driving, we encourage people to play sport, people die and are maimed playing sports, we encourage people to scuba dive, more people die scuba diving than skydiving. When you encourage something, in no way can any fault be placed on you, in the end it is the other individuals choice about what to do, whether to try it or not.

Because in this case we are specifically talking about a minor.

Sometimes kids don't truly understand the consequences of their actions. Also, quite often kids will do things in an effort to please us, not because they really want to do it. I don't think anyone should ever do any type of skydive for any reason but that they truly desire to do it for themselves.

nothing to see here