{"id":4201,"date":"2024-11-19T07:54:39","date_gmt":"2024-11-19T12:54:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/js1cd06kre.onrocket.site\/?p=4201"},"modified":"2024-11-19T07:54:39","modified_gmt":"2024-11-19T12:54:39","slug":"holding-on","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/2024\/11\/19\/holding-on\/","title":{"rendered":"Holding On"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

To listen to today’s reflection as a podcast,\u00a0<\/em>click here<\/a>

His real name was Jean-Fran\u00e7ois Gravelet.

But shortly after he launched his career in the 1840s as Europe\u2019s\u00a0greatest \u201cfunambulist\u201d or tightrope walker, the Frenchman began calling himself Charles Blondin.\u00a0And it wasn\u2019t long before that had morphed into Blondin the Great.

He was a fairly ordinary-looking fellow \u2013 just five-foot five inches tall, blond hair, blue eyes, 140 pounds.\u00a0

But nobody knew how to sustain a crowd\u2019s attention like Blondin.

As a preschooler he had first balanced himself on a rope stretched between two chairs.\u00a0Gradually his vertigo-inducing hobby became an obsession.\u00a0Then a pathway to global celebrity.

He always worked without a net. He never bought life insurance. \u201cWhat company would take that risk?\u201d he used to joke.

Blondin came to America determined to pull off the ultimate stunt.\u00a0He would be the first person to walk across the gorge of the Niagara River just below the falls \u2013 1100 feet from side to side, 160 feet above the water, on a 3-inch rope.

On June 30, 1859, about 25,000 thrill-seekers crowded the bluffs above the \u201cboiling cataract\u201d to see if he would fall.

Blondin, dressed in pink tights with sparkles, took his first steps along the rope.\u00a0Several spectators promptly fainted.\u00a0

In order to steady himself, Blondin carried a 26-foot wooden balancing pole which weighed nearly 50 pounds.\u00a0

Ever the showman, he horrified the crowd by sitting down on the rope about a third of the way across.\u00a0He signaled the Maid of the Mist<\/em>, the tourist boat, to anchor just beneath him.\u00a0He lowered a line and hauled up a bottle of wine.\u00a0After taking a few gulps he started off again, actually finishing his trip at a run.\u00a0<\/em>

Blondin the Great thereby became a worldwide sensation.\u00a0

That was hardly the end of his love affair with Niagara Falls. It\u2019s estimated that he crossed the river about 300 times over the next 35 years.\u00a0And he never did it quite the same way twice.

Blondin once walked backwards<\/em> to Canada.\u00a0He also went across pushing a wheelbarrow.\u00a0Once he made the crossing doing backflips. Another time he crossed at night. He also walked on stilts; inside a sack; blindfolded; and even paused to stand on a chair (with only one chair leg balanced on the rope).

Incredibly, he once lugged a stove and utensils on his back, walked to the center of the rope, kindled a fire, and cooked an omelet.\u00a0He then lowered that breakfast item to the passengers on the Maid<\/em> below.

His most famous crossing involved his manager, Harry Colcord.\u00a0The trusting talent agent climbed onto Blondin\u2019s back and held on for dear life while the acrobat inched his way across.

Beforehand, Blondin gave Colcord strict instructions:\u00a0\u201cIf I sway, sway with me.\u00a0Do not attempt to do any balancing yourself.\u00a0If you do, we will both go to our death.\u201d

Life and death are all about keeping our balance.

On any given day, we\u2019re called to juggle family relationships, work, exercise, friendships, nutrition, housekeeping, entertainment, fiscal responsibility, emotional wellbeing, sleep, and spiritual vitality \u2013 all the while making sure nothing falls into the boiling cataract of life in the 21st<\/sup> century.\u00a0 \u00a0

To which we can only say:\u00a0Good luck with that<\/em>.\u00a0

Blondin was certainly right.\u00a0The only way to arrive safely at our destination is by holding on to someone who has a world of experience \u2013 and who is committed to never losing his grip on us.

An excellent candidate comes to mind.\u00a0

“Don\u2019t be afraid, for I am with you. Don\u2019t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand” (Isaiah 41:10).

Begin each day by prayerfully hitching a ride with the One who has never missed a step.

And who has never been the least bit intimidated by walking through life without a net.
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To listen to today’s reflection as a podcast,\u00a0click here His real name was Jean-Fran\u00e7ois Gravelet. But shortly after he launched his career in the 1840s as Europe\u2019s\u00a0greatest \u201cfunambulist\u201d or tightrope walker, the Frenchman began calling himself Charles Blondin.\u00a0And it wasn\u2019t long before that had morphed into Blondin the Great. He was a fairly ordinary-looking fellow \u2013 just five-foot five inches… Read more »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":4202,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[132],"class_list":["post-4201","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-security"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4201","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4201"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4201\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4203,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4201\/revisions\/4203"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4202"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4201"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4201"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4201"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}