Human life is the path from one discovery to the next. It is the path from denial to acceptance. It is the path from the paradisal ignorance of infancy to the blinding awareness of the world’s infinitude. And it is the path from the greedy and omnivorous absorption of foreign impressions to the selective search for one’s own — a necessary, important, meaningful search.

This discovery process consists of revelations, the component of theodicy that offers us the opportunity not only to make choices, but to achieve breakthroughs. It’s terrible to imagine a reality in which everything is learnt all at once, instantaneously. We have the ability to choose slowly to peel back the wrapper in which the Creator has packed his surprises — this is an incredible gift.

I had long dreamt of parachuting. Dreaming, however, is not doing. Fear robs you of your will, and, with it, it takes your desires, as well. In this case, the path from desire to action took five years. But, when at last everything came together — weather, mood, bird flight, wind conditions, and a friendly push — I nevertheless managed to cross the border between before and after, and jumped into the unknown. And then there was the flight itself. Inside of a single moment, you experience a vortex of thoughts, emotions, heartbeats, rapture, and earthly departure. You know with absolute certainty that this is the most vital thing you’ve ever experienced. You are flying. There suddenly exists a moment in which fear is utterly absent, in which joy is infinitely present. You realise that in moments of the greatest danger there is the least amount of fear. And so my revelation was opened up to me: fear is a necessary aspect of overcoming. Those experiences that most scare us are the greatest in our lives.

My Day of Courage, so to speak, took place two years ago now. Its lesson, though, is one I will forever keep close: beyond my fear lies the best that life has to offer. To make a discovery, to start a business, to realise an idea, to create something that has never before existed — everything is possible. It can be difficult, in such cases, to banish fear. For there is fear not only of failure, but also of success. When everything has turned out, after all, you may find yourself inhumanly burdened by the responsibilities to your successes: to your work, your colleagues, and your family, constantly involved in it all. The fear of losing one’s freedom often inhibits us in making our most important life decisions.

But when you break through these fetters, the whole world opens before you — it is then that life allows to be revealed the most important discovery you’ll ever make: how to be happy.

Lara Lychagina Editor-in-Chief