Good becomes bad over time. Or something

[Magistr8 0]

I was talking to my parents this weekend telling them how I was finished skydiving for the winter. Sounds good no probs right? wrong. All of a sudden they feel that I've done it long enough and should stop jumping. I must say that I am so confused, at first they were supportive and now they are being jerks.

Not that it realy matters what they think in this situation but does ayone else have people who have had this change of heart?

"Impossible is a word to be found only in the dictionary of fools." Napoleon Bonaparte

[Viking 0]

are you living under there roof?

I swear you must have footprints on the back of your helmet - chicagoskydiver
My God has a bigger dick than your god -George Carlin

[skybytch 273]

I have a good friend who did three AFF jumps then worked at manifest for awhile. She now tells me that if I die skydiving she won't go to the funeral. She's lost too many friends, I guess...

I overlook this one flaw, she's a good friend.

[Magistr8 0]

Yeah, but I feel it's a moot point. If you support something and then take back your support, in my mind at least, it's like indian giving. You can't take away support because on a whim you realize " I think he could die doing this"

Morally I feel they should support me because it is what I wanna do.


PS. Lisa, I think your friend is being pretty harsh in her comment. I would think that being one of the skydiving friends that she has who is still jumping would encourage her to give more support. But that's me

"Impossible is a word to be found only in the dictionary of fools." Napoleon Bonaparte

[nws01 0]

My siblings think I am crazy (they are right) and think I have a death wish (wrong) because I skydive. I sent them the Perris picsand the videos and now they disagree. They have more understanding I guess? Oh well, I will do this forever!

[Viking 0]

Quote

Are you living under there roof?

Quote

Yeah

Then they are the boss. The best you can do is try to change there mind.

I swear you must have footprints on the back of your helmet - chicagoskydiver
My God has a bigger dick than your god -George Carlin

[Magistr8 0]

At least I have my friends support on the matter they actually enjoy comming to the DZ every now-and-then just to hang out and come enjoy the atmosphere.

"Impossible is a word to be found only in the dictionary of fools." Napoleon Bonaparte

[Magistr8 0]

Then they are the boss.

I follow all of their rules I help them around the house. This is a lifestyle decision and I don't feel they should be so unsupportive, I agree I have some minds to change though and have a good 5 months to do so

"Impossible is a word to be found only in the dictionary of fools." Napoleon Bonaparte

[AggieDave 6]

Make it a choice, tell them that if you're not jumping, you're going to take that $$ and use it to street race and do drugs.

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

[freefalle 0]

Magistr8, please dont take this response the wrong way, as the following is nothing more than my own independent thoughts. Why do you Skydive? furthermore, why do you feel the need to have the support of your parental figures to justify your skydiving? Exactly what do you get out of your parental figures saying "we support you throwing yourself out of a perfectly good air plane" my friend, your decision to engage in this sport was just that, your decision. The benifits and changes in your life (and Im sure there have been many) resulting from skydiving, are totally yours! Although many people may attempt to presuade you from skydiving the decision and choice is yours. Take ownership of your decision and enjoy it! Be proud of the fact that you have the courage and self confidence to do what many people refuse to try. You speak of support, SCREW their support! man-up continue to own your skydiving and enjoy it. Accept the risks (and Im sure you do) involved in this sport and continue to take pride in the fact that you are a skydiver. Brother, if you need support in your decision to skydive write the following on a peice of paper and stick it in your wallet: Chuck Bryan supports the fact that I skydive and is proud of me for continuing to reach for my goals in and out of this sport.

sorry if this doesnt make sense, Im dealing with alot of things in my own life right now and your post just struck a nerve with me

[Magistr8 0]

I don't take any offense to that at all. The reason I want support from my parents is that My mom and my grandma don't talk to each other becuase if major issues they had while growing up. I don't want to alienate my parents who are otherwise very supportive and drive a splinter into a good bond that means something to me.

"Impossible is a word to be found only in the dictionary of fools." Napoleon Bonaparte

[mre 0]

Quote

I don't want to alienate my parents who are otherwise very supportive and drive a splinter into a good bond that means something to me.

I understand what you mean; this makes a discussion in terms of "who is the boss?" and "why would you care what they think?" rather irrelevant.

This may be a long shot, but what if your parents are simply being rational? They may have accepted that you will skydive for a while and then quit, but now it looks like you may continue for your whole life. Assuming 100+ jumps each year, the expected risk exposure from skydiving will then increase substantially, even approaching ultra-high risk activities such as smoking. Everyone has a right to form their own opinion. Your parents have a right not to be very happy about your skydiving. As others have pointed out though, they would probably be less unhappy the more they learned about the sport and why you love doing it.

It is however not clear what you mean by "not being supportive". One thing is if they are not very happy about your skydiving and are discouraging you to continue. This is what I assumed above, and my point is that they may well give that up once they see that you are continuing anyway. Another is if they are not speaking to you anymore, in which case I sure don't know what to do...

/ mre

[fudd 0]

Parents don't want you to skydive! This goes for almost every moms and dads out there with only a few exceptions. The reason is simple. It's a dangerous sport, and you can die. They love you and want you alive.
Every time you go skydiving, they will be worried about you. There is no easy solution to this problem. They have to accept that skydiving is important for you, and you must accept that they are worried about your safety.
It really sucks to know that your loved ones suffers while you are skydiving. I wish I had an answer to this problem, but I don't.
I'm not saying that skydiving is more dangerous than other activities. Just that it is an extreme.
We had a mother bringing her 16 year old son up to the dropzone, so he could start skydiving. She wanted to make sure he didn't end up drugs, and figured skydiving was safer. (hey, once he becomes a skydiver he'll never afford to buy drugs anyway). That's a pretty cool mom, or what? She seemed a little worried when he was up doing his student jumps, though.

[bluefingers 0]

Quote

Parents don't want you to skydive! This goes for almost every moms and dads out there with only a few exceptions. The reason is simple. It's a dangerous sport, and you can die. They love you and want you alive.
Every time you go skydiving, they will be worried about you. .

I'm really lucky - my dad used to skydive, so he is as pleased as punch. My mom (divorced) isn't thrilled about the idea, but she knows I'm stubborn and she won't change my mind if I have set it to something. In fact, she's promised that next time she's in the neighbourhood she's going to to a tandem, just to see what all the fuss is about. She's great that way. As kids we used to drive motorcycles all over the farm, and she had a fit, until she tried it herself

Kerry

[SBS 0]

I don't want to alienate my parents who are otherwise very supportive and drive a splinter into a good bond that means something to me.

---------------

I totally respect that position. I was the same way with my mom. People sometimes look at me funny when I say that I asked permission to jump, but I didn't really feel like there was any other choice. I knew that she would be reasonable about it, and that we could talk it out. That is just the relationship that we have. She HATED it the first week...she couldn't sleep all weekend. To make it worse, a tandem died the day before my first jump and it was all over the news. I talked her into coming out the next weekend and she thought it was the greatest thing she had ever seen. Now she's done 3 tandems over the past 4 years and will continue to do one once in a while (her first, I couldn't jump with her, her second, I did her video, and this last time I was the tandem master).

Some people can do things without telling their loved ones, but I will never be able to understand it...to me, they will always be a part of what I do.

I think being able to share this has been one of the greatest gifts for us both. Next is to get my grandma out there...she's been fighting it forever, but she's breaking down. We got her brother in law and sister in law to do it last time they were here, and her sister says she's doing it next time...we are all casting our votes that sibling rivalry will get her up there. :)

I'm babbling...I just love my family. :)

-S

_____________
I'm not conceited...I'm just realistic about my awesomeness...

[taraflyer 0]

Most likely your parents felt (hoped) that skydiving was a passing phase for you. Now, they realize it isn't just a phase (but a way of life) and are probably just now facing the fear of losing you. Invite them out to your dz with you for a day so they can see for themselves how very safe it is. In time, they will grow to feel more comfortable.

It's not flying--it's falling with STYLE...

[Enrique 0]

My parents never agreed to my skydiving, so I decided not to tell them I was taking the AFF course. I graduated, got my license and the PARACHUTIST magazines never came.... I started wondering.... well, it turns out my mom was throwing them away because she thought "these people are gonna give him bad ideas" , when I found out about it I already had 25 jumps under my belt.
Now they don't approve, but they don't make a case out of it either, except for saying stuff like: settle down, go hiking, watch a movie or something, stop doing stupid stuff that'll get you killed.... do it for our sake.

E

[Galen 0]

I only told my parents a few weeks a go - after I completed AFF. We pretty much decided never to discuss it again and I had to promise never to call them from the dropzone. I did show them a video of my first AFF jump - probably not the best choice of videos. I'm 28 and live 1200 miles away, what can they do? They also thought I was just trying to hurt myself when I started doing triathlons.

Respect the Dolphin

[Magistr8 0]

Most likely your parents felt (hoped) that skydiving was a passing phase for you.

I think it's that they know this isn't a phase that bothers them the most. That you guys

"Impossible is a word to be found only in the dictionary of fools." Napoleon Bonaparte

[clrarch 0]

I started skydiving about two months ago, and have heard from many people "You're going to die doing that".....I could also die getting up and going about life every day, but that hasn't stopped me so far. I've found talking to my parents and friends has helped quite a bit to help them understand the risks associated with this sport, and how you train to be able to handle those risks. As I learn, I try to teach my parents and friends as well, so that their perception of skydiving is closer to what it actually is. Just an example: When I explained landing upwind/canopy speed/ground speed, etc to my mom and then compared it to me skiing (where I fly down the side of a mountain going close to 60 mph), she got a better understanding of what it's like---she had something to compare it to. I would just try to keep talking to your parents about the sport and why you love it. Good luck!