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My wife will get on me about this post. The Playpen is supposed to be about preemies, parenting and family. Jeremy is running a contest. Jeremy’s site is called Discovering Dad. Its a site about being a good father and what it means to be a good dad. And the prize is some Harry Potter stuff. So you see, babe? Its all about family.
It was one of those nights in the Midwest. Warm, but breezy. Crickets chirped hypnotically. Most of the neighborhood was asleep, and only the glow of the streetlights lit the willows lining the narrow boulevard. Two eighteen-year-old boys leaned on the hood of a 1973 Volvo. Dave, the taller of the two, sucked lazily on a cigarette dangling from his lips while Matt, his best friend, talked excitedly.
“We’re really gonna do this? I mean really. Don’t say it if you don’t mean it, dude.”
Dave exhaled and looked at the street lamp thoughtfully.
“Yeah,” he said finally. “We’re doing it.”
The next morning the two boys were on the road early. A half-empty pot of coffee rested on the floorboards between Matt’s feet and Van Halen blasted on the cheap Pioneer tape deck. It was a long drive, but it went by quickly as both thought about what lay ahead of them in silence.
They arrived at their destination at 10:00 AM. Dave maneuvered the car down a long gravel road. He brought the vehicle to a squeaking stop. Both boys got out and looked up.
Matt’s eyes fixed on a bright orange windsock, blowing restlessly in the morning breeze. He wondered how anyone could actually see it from that high up. It must be…
“Jesus”, Dave said under his breath, interrupting Matt’s train of thought. Matt followed Dave’s gaze skyward and saw what he was reacting to. A figure, clad in what appeared to be some type of spandex and hanging under a gleaming yellow rectangular parachute came swooping down out of the sky at a blazing speed, the fabric of the canopy flapping noisily in the wind. Just when it looked like the man would slam directly into the ground, he yanked on the toggles in his hand, and flew 200 feet or so at top speed hovering a few feet off the ground before lightly touching earth on his tiptoes.
Dave looked at me and I looked back. He looked pale. I knew I did too. There was no turning back now.
Within an hour we were jumpsuit clad, crammed into a dilapidated Cessna 182 and making a laborious ascent to 3000 feet. We both acted excited, throwing thumbs up back and forth to one another, but we both knew that if the plane ride took a little longer, that would be A-OK with us. We were just getting comfortable when the engine slowed and the door to the plane flung open. My heart lept into my throat as the smell of gas, the blast of wind in my face and the sheer noise of the plane engines engulfed me all at once.
“OK, C’mon!” our instructor, Spence, shouted over the roar of the engine. I was glad that Dave was nearest the door. Dave glanced at me one last time, eyes like dinner plates, and scrambled out of the plane. Spence didn’t waste any time. “Ready, Set, GO!”
Before I knew it, Dave was gone. Aside from Spence, I was alone in the plane.
“C’mon dude! Move it…we’re gonna miss our spot!”
I made my way to the door and climbed tentatively out onto the step. I was shocked at how hard the wind was blowing. My knuckles were as white as bone and my body shook with adrenaline. I gripped the wing strut firmly with both hands and jumped off the step, my body swung from the wing like a ribbon on a fan and the plane rocked. What was I doing!” I looked back at the door where Spence crouched inside grinning from ear to ear. The door seemed a million miles away. “Ready, set, GO!”
I let go.
The propellers of the plane grew fainter and fainter, followed by a few brief moments of silence as I fell weightless through the sky. A sensation that I can not. Will not, ever forget. It was as if I was flying in the eye of a storm…almost peaceful. As I began to fall faster, the wind began to whistle in my ears, increasing in volume until my body was racked with a huge jerk. My breath was forced out of my lungs and my legs flailed about. My whole body tensed. When it passed I looked up and saw the most beautiful sight I have ever seen in my life. A big, billowing, perfectly-opened red parachute. I had done it.
I eased back in my harness and looked around. From that height, the farmland looked like a giant jigsaw puzzle, divided up into multi-colored squares. I looked down past my feet and saw another parachute far below making lazy circles as it descended to Earth. Dave.
I have never felt more at peace than I did that first day, flying around under my red parachute. There is no other way in the world one can experience that view. Dead silence. The breeze blowing gently on your face. Nothing, I mean nothing, around but you and the clouds. It is the closest I have ever been to Heaven.
For the next two years, Dave and I jumped together a lot, and I am not certain that I will ever have a period in my life again where I feel that free. Those were the golden days…the days we will sit on the porch in rocking chairs as old men and discuss while the sun sets. The best of times. The adventure of a lifetime.
Matt
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October 10th, 2008 at 5:29 pm
I can honestly say, that is something I will NEVER do. But, it is very cool that you did. And even lived to tell about it!
Blessings From Aboves last blog post..A Letter from "TF"
October 10th, 2008 at 6:49 pm
Thanks for that because that is the closest I will ever get to voluntarily leaving the relative safety of an airplane to hurl towards the ground at 200 mph. I didn’t do too well in physics but I think the word crazy appears after the equals sign in that equation.
BusyDads last blog post..My NYC Trip. Mad Libs Style.
October 13th, 2008 at 7:30 pm
My hubby is considering the contest - Thanks! The prize is quite enticing in our home. He is ranger qualified, but could never think of a good reason to jump out of a perfectly good airplane unless required. He will always want at least a broom.
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