Jumping Into Silence

The moment right before you jump is when your brain screams loudest. Sitting in this

plane at 15,000 feet, my hands won't stop shaking. The door slides

open and the wind hits like a wall. Everyone says skydiving is fun, but nobody mentions

the part where you shuffle to the edge and see nothing but clouds below. My instructor taps

my shoulder. It's time. Three steps to the door. The ground looks

fake from up here. He counts to three but pushes on two because apparently people grab on three.

And then you're falling. The first five seconds your brain can't process what's happening.

Then the parachute opens and everything goes silent. You're floating. The terror turns