To redeem:
To save (a person or soul) from a state of sinfulness and its consequences
To restore the honor, worth, or reputation of
To atone for (an error or mistake)
To compensate for the faults or bad aspects of (something)
It was in 1922 that a nameless paragliding pilot from Rio, after an epic series of bad decisions and premature landings (a.k.a. “bomb-outs”) in a local competition, felt a deep, even religious need to redeem himself. So he climbed the hill of Corcovado, looked down on the sprawling splendor of city, ocean, jungle, and rock beneath him, grandiosely spread his arms and, slightly raising his sweaty chin, exclaimed, “Help me, Jesus, redeem myself!” Needless to say, he was fucking tired of losing (not to mention the climb). So, his arms still spread out, he closed his eyes and made himself and God a promise. Then he walked back down to the city and gathered all the other Rio pilots suffering from chronic bomb-out syndrome and occupying the bottom side of the comp result sheets. That night, spending their last money on more rounds of cachaça than history can count, they drew the first architectural drawing …read more
Source:: Ozone Paragliders