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Alpha One Free Selective Reading Trial Test Paper

“The Lights Of Saint Lucia” (By Sara Matson)

“Don’t go!” Britta’s younger sister, Eva, cried. Britta stuffed her pyjamas into a backpack.
“I can’t miss Kalie’s birthday party.” “You’ll miss our Saint Lucia Day traditions!” Eva
said. “Can’t you come back in the morning? Kalie’s house is right next door, so you could
be here in a minute.” “Silly! No one leaves a slumber party at 6:00 A.M.,” Britta said.
“Anyway, this is your chance to be Saint Lucia. With me gone, you’ll be the oldest girl.”

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“The only girl,” Eva muttered.

Britta felt a twinge of regret. Even though Britta was glad Kalie had invited her to the

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party, part of her didn’t want to go. Saint Lucia Day was one of her favourite holidays.

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Seeing the happy yellow candlelight on a cold December morning always made her feel
cosy. Plus, it was fun to wake up Mum and Dad for once, instead of the other way

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around. But friends were important, too – especially when you were the new girl in
school. Sometimes, Britta decided, you had to choose between friends and family.

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“Time for me to go,” she said, zipping her backpack. Tears filled Eva’s eyes. “I don’t know
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how to make coffee!” she said. “And who will tie my sash?” “You know how to tie a bow,”
Britta said patiently. “And you can skip the coffee this year.” “But Saint Lucia is
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supposed to serve coffee!” Britta sighed. “Eva, you can do this.” She opened a box on her
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desk and lifted out a crown of plastic candles. After setting it on Eva’s head, she turned
the candles on and flipped off the overhead light. Her sister’s face glowed in the dark
room. “Perfect,” Britta said. “Once you have the tray ready, carry it upstairs into Mum
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and Dad’s room and sing the song. Easy as breathing.” “Do you really think I can do it?”
Eva asked, taking off the crown. “For sure.” But as she watched Eva trudge out of the
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room, Britta couldn’t help worrying a little.

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The next morning, Britta woke up while it was still dark. She glanced at the clock on
Kalie’s dresser. 5:45. She snuggled deeper into her sleeping bag, trying to fall back to
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sleep. But she kept thinking about Eva. Am I a terrible sister for leaving Eva to do
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everything herself? She wondered. She stepped over the sleeping girls to Kalie’s
bedroom window, where she had a perfect view down into her family’s kitchen. Pretty
soon, the light clicked on and Eva appeared, wearing a white dress with a crookedly tied
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red sash. Britta watched Eva arrange lussekatter and pepparkakor – Lucia buns and
gingersnaps – on a plate. Last year, Britta remembered, the two of them had giggled and
shushed each other while munching about five cookies each. The year before, they’d had
to replace the crown’s batteries at the last minute, and Eva had rushed to find some in
one of her toys.

Suddenly, Britta knew she’d made the wrong decision. She needed to be with her family.
But it was too late to do anything about it. Or was it? Like Eva had said, it would take
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only a minute to get home. Britta tiptoed over to Kalie and shook her awake. “I need to
go home,” she whispered. Kalie sat up. “Are you sick?” “No. There’s something I have to
do,” Britta said. “But I promise I’ll come back as soon as I can. And I’ll bring lussekatter.”
“Looseh-what?” “Swedish bread. You’ll like it,” Britta explained. Kalie nodded. “I’ll watch
from the window to make sure you get home OK.”

Moments later, Britta flew through the darkness to her own front door. After turning to
wave up at Kalie, she unlocked it and slipped inside. A wide-eyed Eva stood in the
hallway, holding a tray in her hands. She had already switched on her crown’s lights.

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“What are you doing?” Britta grinned. “I changed my mind.” To Britta’s surprise, Eva’s
face fell. “But I was going to wear the crown for the first time. Now that you’re here, you
get to wear it.” “No, I don’t,” Britta assured her. “This year, I’ll be your helper. But first,

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let’s start the coffeemaker.” “OK,” said Eva. “I’ll get the cream and sugar.”

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As they bustled about in the kitchen, Eva smiled. “I’m glad you came back, Britta.” “Me

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too! I can’t believe I almost missed it,” Britta said. When everything was ready, Eva
picked up the tray. Britta followed her sister up the steps, carrying the electric candle

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Eva had held in past years. At the top of the stairs, they began to sing: “Outside it’s dark
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and cold…”
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1. Why is Britta so keen on going to Kalie’s birthday party?
a. Because she doesn’t want to be in charge of the Saint Lucia traditions this
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year
b. Because she wants to give equal time to her family and friends
c. Because she doesn’t want to miss out on the slumber party
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d. Because she is new at her school and needs friendships

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2. Why doesn’t Eva want Britta to miss their Saint Lucia Day celebrations?
a. She cannot make coffee, which is a prominent part of the celebration
b. She wants to celebrate it with the entire family present
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c. She and Britta share the responsibilities regarding the celebration

d. She is worried how she will be able to handle everything alone since she
is not old enough
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3. Kalie could be best described as what kind of a friend?

a. Caring and cooperative
b. Appreciative and grateful
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c. Mean and selfish

d. Indifferent and casual

4. How do Eva’s reactions change from when she initially sees Britta back at home
to the end of the story?
a. From excited to normal
b. From disappointed to happy
c. From shocked to thankful
d. From relieved to cheerful
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5. Which of the following options best fits the missing words in the following
statement? While preparing for Saint Lucia Day, the two sisters have a very
__________ relationship.
a. Chaotic and changing
b. Hostile and argumentative
c. Fun and easy going
d. Systematic and focused

6. What event from the story makes Britta change her mind and decide to go back
home on the morning of Saint Lucia Day?

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a. Watching her sister struggle with her responsibilities from Kalie’s
window

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b. Not being able to sleep and overthinking
c. Recalling the sweet memories from previous Saint Lucia Day celebrations

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d. All of the above

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7. What is the main theme of this short story?
a. New responsibilities bring new emotions

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b. You should make plans with your friends wisely
c. Think of others before yourself
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d. Sometimes you have to put family and traditions above others
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 © Alpha One Coaching College

“Life Doesn’t Frighten Me” (By Maya Angelou)

Shadows on the wall [1]

Noises down the hall
Life doesn’t frighten me at all

Bad dogs barking loud

Big ghosts in a cloud [5]
Life doesn’t frighten me at all

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Mean old Mother Goose
Lions on the loose

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They don’t frighten me at all

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Dragons breathing flame [10]
On my counterpane

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That doesn’t frighten me at all.

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I go boo in
Make them shoo
I make fun [15]
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Way they run
I won’t cry
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So they fly
I just smile
They go wild [20]
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Life doesn’t frighten me at all.

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Tough guys fight

All alone at night
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Life doesn’t frighten me at all.

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Panthers in the park [25]

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Strangers in the dark

No, they don’t frighten me at all.
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That new classroom where

Boys all pull my hair
(Kissy little girls [30]
With their hair in curls)
They don’t frighten me at all.

Don’t show me frogs and snakes

And listen for my scream,
If I’m afraid at all [35]
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It’s only in my dreams.

I’ve got magic charm

That I keep up my sleeve
I can walk the ocean floor
And never have to breathe. [40]

Life doesn’t frighten me at all

Not at all
Not at all.

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Life doesn’t frighten me at all.

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8. The examples that the speaker lists in this poem are…
a. Things that children are taught to be afraid of

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b. Things that amusing to children
c. Things that children are often afraid of

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d. Things that they see in their imaginations
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9. Stanza 5 suggests that the speaker faces scary things by…
a. Hiding away from them
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b. Fighting them
c. Showing that they are not scared of them
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d. Ignoring scary thoughts

10. What characteristics about the speaker are described in stanza 5?

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a. Carefree and chill

b. Brave and optimistic
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c. Easily scared and worrisome

d. Motivational and powerful
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11. How does the repetition of the line “life doesn’t frighten me at all” add meaning
to the poem?
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a. It presents the speaker as someone who is showing off their ability to not
get frightened by anything, reinforcing the idea that most people’s fears
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are silly
b. It reassures the readers that despite what we encounter in life, we should
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not be afraid and challenge our fears

c. It makes the readers question whether their fears are genuine
d. It describes the speaker as being experienced with facing their fears and
thus, teaching the reader how to do it since it is common for everyone to
have fears
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12. What is the meaning of lines 37-40?

a. The speaker is wishing that they could be brave enough and imagines
being competent enough to face any fantastical scenario
b. The speaker does not want to share their secret techniques in overcoming
fears
c. The speaker is suggesting that boldness is easily accessible to everyone
and is asking the readers to be courageous in every situation
d. The speaker’s strategy to conquering fears works like a powerful magic
charm in their life, giving them the faith in themselves to do anything

13. Which stanza most reveals the imaginative personality of the speaker?

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a. Stanza 4
b. Stanza 8

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c. Stanza 10
d. Stanza 3

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14. The poem is most likely written from the perspective of…

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a. A brave man
b. A young girl

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c. A motivational speaker
d. An adult looking back at their past
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For Questions 15-20, choose from the sentences (A – G) the one which best fits each gap.
There is one extra sentence which you do not need to use.

“Plants Yell When Stressed Out, Study Finds”

Plants ‘yell’ out when under stress, new research has found. An Israeli study has
revealed plants make noise a bit like bubble-wrap being popped when they are stressed
from a lack of water or having their stems cut. 15._____

The researchers believe insects, other mammals and maybe even other plants can
probably hear the call of the stressed plants. “Even in a quiet field, there are actually

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sounds that we don’t hear, and those sounds carry information,” said study senior
author Lilach Hadany, from Tel Aviv University. “There are animals that can hear these

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sounds, so there is the possibility that a lot of acoustic interaction is occurring.”

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16._____ The team found that stressed plants emitted more sounds than unstressed
plants. The stressed plant sounds resembled pops or clicks, and a single stressed plant

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emitted about 30-50 of these clicks per hour at seemingly random intervals. Professor
Hadany said happy plants were found to make far fewer sounds. “When tomatoes are

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not stressed at all, they are very quiet,” she said. 17._____
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18._____ Although the study focused on tomato and tobacco plants, because of their ease
to grow in the laboratory, the research team also recorded a variety of other plant
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species. 19._____
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Exactly how the plants made the noises was unclear, but the researchers suggested it
might be due to the formation and bursting of air bubbles in the plant’s vascular system,
a process called cavitation. Whether or not the plants were producing these sounds in
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order to communicate with other living things was also unclear. “It’s possible that other
organisms could have evolved to hear and respond to these sounds,” Professor Hadany
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said. “For example, a moth that intends to lay eggs on a plant or an animal that intends
to eat a plant could use the sounds to help guide their decision.” Other plants could also
be listening in and benefiting from the sounds, with past research showing plants can
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respond to sounds and vibrations. “So now that we know that plants do emit sounds, the
next question is ‘who might be listening’,” Professor Hadany said. 20._____
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A. The study, published in the journal Cell on March 30, found thirsty plants began
making noises before they were visibly dehydrated, and the frequency of sounds
peaked after five days with no water, before decreasing again as the plants dried
up completely.

B. The plant sounds are about the same volume as normal human conversation,
however the pitch is too high for people to hear.

C. “We are currently investigating the responses of other organisms, both animals
and plants, to these sounds, and we’re also exploring our ability to identify and

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interpret the sounds in completely natural environments.”

D. The researchers used microphones to record healthy and stressed tomato and

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tobacco plants, and then trained a machine learning algorithm to differentiate
between unstressed plants, thirsty plants and cut plants.

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E. The types of sounds the plants emitted differed according to the cause of their

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stress.

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F. Travellers from overseas often need to declare any plants that they are bringing
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into the country to ensure the plants are not pest species.
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G. “We found that many plants – corn, wheat, grape and cactus plants, for example –
emit sounds when they are stressed,” Professor Hadany said.
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 © Alpha One Coaching College

Read the four extracts below on the theme of ‘abseiling’.

For Questions 21 – 30, choose the extract (A, B, C or D) which you think best answers the
question.

Which extract…

21. Mentions the importance of being patient and supportive of those who are _____
scared during their abseiling adventure?
22. Describes why abseiling is safe?

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_____
23. Suggests that there are many processes to go over before starting abseiling? _____

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24. Communicates what the hardest part about abseiling is? _____
25. Describes the impact of an encouraging instructor on the narrator?

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_____
26. Provides a quote to state how easy abseiling can be? _____

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27. Mentions some things the narrator did that helped them during the abseil? _____

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28. Could be extracted from an abseiling booking site? _____
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29. Provides the reader with an insight into how amazing it feels when abseiling? _____
30. Implies that the narrator’s instructor should’ve been more verbal in guiding _____
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them?
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Extract A
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Our one-day adventure abseiling course is designed for participants with little or no
previous experience. Remember - "If you can walk, you can abseil!". Our professional
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team can help you learn new skills or just guide your adventure & ensure you have fun!
We begin the day with a safety briefing and training session using practice abseils at our
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specially selected abseiling area. The subjects we cover include the fitting of harnesses
and the use of descending devices, familiarisation with the important safety procedures
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and how to use the correct abseiling skills and techniques. While we place much
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emphasis on fun and adventure, we will also teach you the important skills you’ll need
to go abseiling in safety anywhere! After a filling mountain lunch, we will head off to
tackle even bigger and more challenging abseils!
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Extract B
Abseiling! Most people will be either super excited, or suddenly feeling anxious. I'm
somewhere in between! I love abseiling down a rope and have descended small towers
to massive multi-drop cliffs, but it wasn't always that easy. Reflecting back on my
experience, I nervously approached the top of the abseil, clutching at my harness as I
stepped closer. With the safety line firmly in my hand, I peered cautiously over the edge,
looking down at what looked like an enormous drop. The instructor didn't say much,
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which didn't help. I was connected onto the belay and abseil line and then told to go,
with little to no other instructions. I teetered at the edge for what felt like an eternity.
Not wanting to look down, but at the same time, wanting to see where I was going. I
looked forward and stepped back, my heart pounding so fast I could feel it beating my
ear drums. I took another step awkwardly lurching back. My foot slip, but I caught it in
time and I was over the edge! Leaning back, suddenly I was abseiling!

Extract C
Abseiling, despite being perceived by some participants as one of scariest and most

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dangerous activities you can do, nothing could be further from the truth. It's in fact one
of the safest! Think about it, you've got a harness, which is then connected to an abseil
line, and on top of that connected to a belay line, which is a setup as no single point of

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failure system. So from a risk point of view, it's super safe! Walk backwards!!! That's it!

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But the psychological challenging to get yourself over the edge is the real task! Most
participants freeze right at the top. This is something a good instructor can work

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through and talk calmly and patiently with anyone who is finding it hard to take that
first step back off the tower, or cliff. Don't pressure anyone to the point they're feeling

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overwhelmed! That's not good for anyone, be supportive, help them, but if they decide
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not to go, then just let them know how well they did when they tried it.
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Extract D
I finally decided to step forward, with every bit of courage I could muster. My
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instructor’s calm focussed reassurance gave me all of the confidence needed to step
slowly back towards the edge of the cliff. “I’ve got you”, she repeated over and over until
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I believed her. I decided that the only way I was going to do this was to not look at the
view ahead or to look down. It helped a lot to just focus on the rock in front of me and
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where my feet needed to be. As I shuffled my feet to stand on the edge of the cliff with
my back towards the Megalong Valley, I breathed like a champ. It helped calm me down
as I stepped slowly down the edge and continued walking down the cliff for about 8
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metres. There were a few moments where I managed to open one or both of my eyes to
capture the outstanding view that I was immersed in. It was like an out of body
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experience – something that you cannot describe in words, but that you must
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experience for yourself to know what I mean. It was one of the most awesome moments
of my life. As my feet touched solid ground and four of my fellow adventurers celebrated
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my arrival, I felt ecstatic and relieved. It was surreal.