I'm a Butterfly

~8~
After some days of practising the handling, again, we went up to higher altitude. It was time for our first little flight, still gliding, but this time we run down into a cliff. That was a long glide, about 150 meters. It feels like you learn how to control falling, or how I like to call it, "the way of falling".
The teacher told us that we are ready, and the next day will be our first real flight. It was so exciting.
~8~
Next day came. First we took the lift until the end and hiked further uphill to an open and very steep hillside, up to 1,700 meters approx. We prepared our equipment, put the sail wide open on a good spot, all was set. Ready to go. No! Ready to fly. But on that day, we learned something important about paragliding. We did, for our first time, parawaiting. For a good start you need wind, a good upstream which brings you up. So, we were waiting. We had nice chats, observed the masters of mountain climbing, the chamois, stared at eagles and learned how they glide. Have you observed eagles and wonder why they rarely flap their wings? They use the thermal wind. Like us pupils, ones we understand how to.
~8~
Finally, the wind came, and I was the first to go.
Everything worked well, like practised. I pulled the cords on the wide opened sail, sail went up and caught wind, I started running downhill right before the sail reaches the zenith and baam! I was already in the air. The hillside was so steep that it took me maybe five steps. I heard the voice of my teacher through the radio, "well done". Then I jumped back in my harness' seat to myself comfy and followed the instructions of my teacher. I was gliding. Not only that, but I was sailing through the air. Flying, like my new fellows, the eagles. Goodbye chamois. Slowly but steady, I glided into the valley. The trees shrank smaller and smaller. The tips of the mountains were in the same altitude as me. Wait! What!? The tips of the mountain were way higher than our starting point. I looked down to the ground, looked back, searched the point where I started from. I found it and, it wasn't that far. Not far from moving forward, a couple of hundreds of meters behind me, but I was very high up in the air.
I was scared. Panic felt over me. Ok, I needed to concentrate, observe the situation from outside and feel my body consciously, relax, breathed in and out. I was back. My teacher's voice from the radio told me that the conditions are very good, the thermal is strong, and I'm doing a good job. It will take me a few moments more than expected to get back to the ground, he said. So, I started to enjoy. Between panic and a unique feeling of freedom. A happy feeling. I laughed and cried. It was crazy beautiful. Unbelievable. What am I doing here, I asked my self.
I reached the valley and the landing spot we fixed before. My teacher were waiting and prepared a little flag as an aiming point. To lose height, you need to fly in circles. As I learned, I did. That were many cycles. So many that before I got dizzy, I changed from circles to eights. Landed, survived, got my eagle batch. Yippee!
~8~
After my flight, our teacher intermitted today's session. The conditions were too good. Too good for beginners. Flying up that high isn't the best for beginners. My teacher was happy that I started because of my experience in heights and hanging on ropes. I already have a little feeling with heights and extraordinaire places. But wow!
I will never forget that feeling.
~8~
Unfortunately, not many recordings exist.
One video: