Tiffany, CfY Mentor
Over the next week, in celebration of this time of Thanksgiving, we’ll be sharing stories of individuals that have been impacted by CfY and because of that, by the donors that support us. Today, we are thankful for Strength. Tiffany, a CfY mentor, shares her story of finding strength within her experiences with us.
“I was not planning on rock climbing since I hadn’t been in years. Fear made me doubt myself – fear of being too old to rock climb, fear of not being able to make it far enough, fear of falling and hurting myself. I probably would have sat out this activity if it wasn’t for encouragement from a student. She inspired me to show up, let go of the storylines that might’ve held me back, and give it my best shot. I’m so glad I did.
Rock climbing is harder than it looks! It took both physical and mental strength for me to test my limits. I had to trust both my ability and the belay team to have my back. This trust enabled me to tap into my inner strength, which it turns out, is stronger than I imagined. I got about 2/3 of the way up by thoughtfully planning each step. Finally, with all my limbs shaking, I knew to listen to my body and come back down. This was so physically challenging that I was sore for the next couple of days just from my one attempt up the wall. I know I wouldn’t have made it as far as I did without the students and other mentors cheering me on. Because of this experience, I have a tremendous amount of appreciation and gratitude for CfY – for teaching me about trusting myself, reconnecting with my inner strength, and for giving me a newfound interest in rock climbing!
I am grateful to the donors who give us the opportunity to come together to support youth, who inspire us, and who hopefully get inspired by us too. There is strength in numbers within CfY, and I’m so proud to be part of it.”