This month, I dared three of our readers to get makeovers. I dared them to put their looks in my hands, and, much to my surprise, they did! Nikki, Jesrhel, and Meg showed up at the salon, sat in the chairs, and let me call all the shots. It's hard enough to go through a total beauty overhaul when you're the one in control, but I imagine it must be even harder when someone else (namely, me!) is making the decisions.

Change can be scary, and we really challenged them to make a commitment. (Going from long hair to a chic, sleek bob? MAJOR commitment!) It takes a lot of guts to say "yes," but these three fun and fearless girls certainly had the courage. Was their trust well placed? I'd say yes, of course, but check out our makeover feature in this month's issue and decide for yourselves.

Now, I'm not afraid of a makeover, and I'm definitely not afraid to be adventurous with the way I look. But I am  scared of a good number of things. Spiders, for one. Flying cockroaches are another (I think everyone's afraid of those!). My biggest phobia, though, is probably my debilitating fear of heights. It's something I've always wanted to get over because it has held me back from some amazing experiences.

For example: Several years ago, my family took a trip to China and one of our stops was the Great Wall. Now, the thing is, the Great Wall isn't flat. It's a majestic network of stairs that go up and down for miles and miles. The steps aren't all even; some are extremely narrow, some are very high, and I just wasn't daring enough to climb it. I sat in a palisade on the side while my mom and my younger brother explored.

To this day, I still regret not throwing myself into the experience completely. Who knows if I'll ever get to go back there, right? I'm the kind of girl who has absolutely no fear of jumping into the open ocean, hundreds of feet deep without a life jacket, to swim with whale sharks (I think I was a mermaid in a past life). Why was I scared to climb up a flight or two of ancient stairs?

My logical mind has always understood that particular fear is irrational, and this year, I was determined to take baby steps to kill it. Life is too short for me to be missing out on all the incredible things the world has to offer. There are just too many adventures to be had. And, as a Cosmo chick, I think it's my responsibility to live by our mantra. I promised that whenever I feel scared of something that I have no real reason to be scared of, I will ask myself, What would a fun and fearless chick do?

I finally got to put it into practice earlier this year when my family took a trip to Boracay. My brother, our balikbayan cousin, and uncle wanted to go parasailing, so the whole family went along for the boat ride. Boracay parasails can seat two at a time, so after my uncle and cousin had their 15 minutes in the air, my brother was getting strapped in for his. I thought to myself, fun and fearless, fun and fearless, threw caution to the wind, and had myself strapped in next to him. Soon enough, we were moving up, and the further away my feet were from the boat, the further away I felt from my fear.

It felt like we were hundreds of feet in the air, and it was terrifying but exhilarating at the same time. Everything is quiet up there; just the roaring of wind in your ears and whatever conversation goes on between you and whoever you're with. You see the entire White Beach from Station 1 to Station 3, and the world looks so small. It was a strangely humbling experience.

We landed safely 15 minutes later. There really wasn't anything to be afraid of after all, and I had another great experience to file away in my memory. I took a great first step toward eliminating my fear of heights.

Maybe my second step will be bungee jumping.

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