I recall a summer porch conversation with Sam regarding souls. The big question was whether or not there are a finite number of souls that get ripped to smaller and smaller pieces as more people are born. This would lead me to believe that, as far as "soul mates" go, there are thousands of them for every person. People who share pieces of your soul that you didn't know existed, let alone know you are missing.
You know how sometimes you befriend someone and you know almost
instantly that the two of you were supposed to meet? That this other
person has somehow managed to enter or reenter your life at exactly the
right moment, whether you realize it at the time or not, is either a
crazy twist of energy (others may refer to this as "fate" or "destiny")
or unbelievable coincidence. I'm not sure how common a phenomenon that is, but I've gotta say, it's pretty freakin' cool.
I'm not sure where I really stand on the issue of souls, but whether they are or are not a thing, the connections people make with each other are completely wonderful.
Tuesday, July 30, 2013
Sunday, July 28, 2013
"You are now in control of the parachute."
Ok, picture this:
You climb into a perfectly healthy airplane with 15-or-so other people. You squeeze in, put on your seat belt, and the plane takes off. It's a small plane, so the ride is a little bumpy, but really not bad. You stare out the window as you climb through the clouds - it's been a few years since you've flown and you'd forgotten how much you like takeoff. The proverbial seat belt sign is turned off, and you unbuckle and chat with the people around you. Before you know it, you're being strapped to a bearded Aussie named Steve while watching the door open and the people in front of you begin their 10,000 foot fall. Steve scoots the two of you up to the door, you cross your arms over your chest, lean out, and...
HOLY SHIT YOU GUYS!
I JUMPED OUT OF A PLANE TODAY!
By "I", I mean "Rich and I".
By "Rich and I", I mean "Rich and Larry" and "Steve and I".
It was crazy. Brilliant. Incredible. Insert positive adjective here. There really are no words to describe how amazing the whole experience was. We weren't even sure we were going to get to go up because of the weather - it was pretty cloudy when we got there and they hadn't done a jump all day because of it. We were lucky enough to be able to sneak in during the one window of clear sky all day. They were so anxious to get people jumping that we (shh! don't tell!) ended up skipping the training video/mini class session and just went straight into action.
The view from the sky was beautiful! As soon as we got below the cloud cover we had a great view of Chicago and the lake (and Gary, but meh, it's Gary.) Remind me to wear a sports bra next time, though. As soon as he opened the chute I got all kinds of painfully smashed. Probably the most terrifying part - for me, anyway - was when Steve handed me a pair of yellow straps and then said, "You are now in control of the parachute." ARE YOU KIDDING ME? HOLY ADRENALINE, BATMAN! haha
I called my brother after we left - he's been more than a few times and loves it - and we decided to go next summer when he gets out of the Navy. I'm looking forward to once again hurling myself at the earth!
There may be another post to follow about how I lied on my paperwork and how I later realized that the adrenaline surge felt almost exactly like being manic. If I feel like writing one. Hah!
You climb into a perfectly healthy airplane with 15-or-so other people. You squeeze in, put on your seat belt, and the plane takes off. It's a small plane, so the ride is a little bumpy, but really not bad. You stare out the window as you climb through the clouds - it's been a few years since you've flown and you'd forgotten how much you like takeoff. The proverbial seat belt sign is turned off, and you unbuckle and chat with the people around you. Before you know it, you're being strapped to a bearded Aussie named Steve while watching the door open and the people in front of you begin their 10,000 foot fall. Steve scoots the two of you up to the door, you cross your arms over your chest, lean out, and...
 |
| Post-jump is all you get. Pictures from them were too steep for us! I am aware that we (unintentionally) look like Christmas. |
HOLY SHIT YOU GUYS!
I JUMPED OUT OF A PLANE TODAY!
By "I", I mean "Rich and I".
By "Rich and I", I mean "Rich and Larry" and "Steve and I".
It was crazy. Brilliant. Incredible. Insert positive adjective here. There really are no words to describe how amazing the whole experience was. We weren't even sure we were going to get to go up because of the weather - it was pretty cloudy when we got there and they hadn't done a jump all day because of it. We were lucky enough to be able to sneak in during the one window of clear sky all day. They were so anxious to get people jumping that we (shh! don't tell!) ended up skipping the training video/mini class session and just went straight into action.
The view from the sky was beautiful! As soon as we got below the cloud cover we had a great view of Chicago and the lake (and Gary, but meh, it's Gary.) Remind me to wear a sports bra next time, though. As soon as he opened the chute I got all kinds of painfully smashed. Probably the most terrifying part - for me, anyway - was when Steve handed me a pair of yellow straps and then said, "You are now in control of the parachute." ARE YOU KIDDING ME? HOLY ADRENALINE, BATMAN! haha
I called my brother after we left - he's been more than a few times and loves it - and we decided to go next summer when he gets out of the Navy. I'm looking forward to once again hurling myself at the earth!
There may be another post to follow about how I lied on my paperwork and how I later realized that the adrenaline surge felt almost exactly like being manic. If I feel like writing one. Hah!
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