The Van Started Rolling Backward Up the Mountain

 

The bus climbed toward the highest point in Trinidad, and something felt wrong. Kim E. Dooley, PhD, noticed it first: the slight drift backward despite the driver's grip on the wheel. Then she smelled it: burning rubber.

The vehicle was losing traction on the steep incline. Around her, passengers exchanged nervous glances. The road climbed higher, the angle growing sharper. There was nothing below but a long drop. The van continued its slow, terrifying slide backward.

In that moment, Dooley could have panicked. She could have gripped the seat and waited for disaster. Instead, something remarkable happened. Music blared from the speakers, Soca, the high-energy blend of African rhythms and Caribbean soul that pulses through the islands. The driver kept pushing forward. The passengers started shouting the chant: "You say Soca, I say Warrior…Soca…Warrior."

The absurdity of it struck her. Here they were, inches from catastrophe, and instead of fear, the van filled with defiant joy. The passengers weren't pretending the danger didn't exist. They were refusing to let it steal their spirit. They kept singing louder as the van fought its way to the summit.

Something shifted. The vehicle gripped the road. They crested the top.

In "When Life Misses a Note: Gaining Wisdom Through Lived Experience," Dooley discovered that survival isn't always about having the right strategy. Sometimes it's about choosing hope and community in moments when everything feels impossible. That ride up the mountain taught her that human connection can be stronger than gravity itself. Grab your copy today from the author's official website or from Amazon.


Live link: https://booksbykimedooley.com/

Name: Kim Dooley

Email: k-dooley@techtraininggroup.com

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