60 seconds

yesterday i went skydiving. i jumped out of a plane. i was strapped to a spunky red-headed man named pancake who's jumped over 8500 times. upon introduction, i trusted him more than any stranger i've ever met. we jumped from 13,500 feet and freefell for 60 seconds at 120 mph until we reached 5,000 feet. those 60 seconds were without a doubt the most amazing 60 seconds of my entire life. i've never felt such adrenaline, such euphoria, such freedom. pancake let me pull the cord at 5,000 feet and we floated over the garden state heading towards our field marked with an X where we landed smoothly on our feet. after landing, my vocabulary was limited to "oh my god", "i just jumped out of a plane", and "fucking amazing". other than that it was a ridiculous smile that would not come off my face. i now know what i believe to be the ultimate natural high.

i immediately told my mom, who had no prior knowledge of the jump, and said "guess what i just did". i've done many things in my life she hasn't exactly been thrilled about, so she quickly squaked out a "WHAT" with motherly fear in her voice. she was shocked, but was actually thanking me for not telling her ahead of time. she called me four times last night as she continued to process what i had done.

i am actually still processing it myself. it's making me think about things. big things. this experience has challenged my perspective. and i want to go again. and again.