Mansur Syed
did the world flash before your eyes
howd u feel?
Ernie Granillo
This sounds pretty hyperbolic, but it is kind of like, seeing your own mortality. In a very dramatic/hyperbolic way.
See like roller coasters and rides and stuff, they do similar things to your body; like physically its a similar feeling. But you’ve got this elaborate rail system, which you see. Like, a safety bar right in front of you. And people wearing nametags and TV monitors with cheesy actors. It’s a contained system – you know the path just by looking at it.
At least to me, thats what I see when I see a roller coaster – I just see what they’re trying to do. I still get a thrill out of it, because it’s making a physical impact to my body – it’s made deliberately for the senses.
Skydiving wasn’t that. It was chaotic and difficult for me to process. The safety system, is just the thing strapped to your back – (or in my case, to the guy behind me) which I knew nothing about. And you’re at a height that is impossible to achieve without human machinery and you leave that machinery.
The whole process is – unnatural, and counter intuitive. You’re on a plane, with basically a missing door and then you’re waiting for the people in front of you to just exit said plane. Also, no one is screaming at you to put your tray table up, but people are just disappearing out the door – and this is perfectly ok.
So then you follow them out. It’s very bizarre.
Then in your head there’s this whole, you know, you’re crunching the numbers, making it logical. You’re telling yourself it’s safe, statistically, you know, etc. You’re also just trying to prevent yourself from freaking out, because that’s probably not a good idea to do. Don’t freak out about freaking out!
And then hurling down its just, well, what choice do I have. There is no more choice and there’s a peace in that. Clarity.
And its pretty good view too.
