Notes on Falling

 

Sydney storms

Houses washed away lives lost

Falling rain

Torrents in the creeks

 

Force of gravity

On the bend of a space time continuum

Black holes in deep space

 

Cats drop from apartment blocks

Reaching terminal velocity after 9 floors

Spin and splay and relax and walk away unscathed

 

The last moments before sleep

Snap awake

Genetic memory from the time we slept in trees

Lions below

 

Our most common human dream

 

Price of iron ore

$A

Government revenue, the economy

 

Ian lead climbing

Several meters above his last runner

Committed to moves he can’t reverse

Tangled feet hands on the wrong holds

“Watch me”

And he’s off, top runner pulls

Sudden stretchy stop 8 m down

Clean, fast, ok

 

Time seems to compress on the way down

Mind and senses focused

Hyperalert

Like slowmo

 

Plane climbs steeply then levels out

Clip to the tandem

Sit on the edge lean forward

Screaming exhilarating terror

Lips, cheeks face pulled back with G force

 

Tumbling into love

Headlong

Tingling heart catches fire

 

Mum at home

Down the stairs in the middle of the night

87

Cracked pelvis

Discomfort pain mobility limited

A walker to get around

Care and assistance

A loss of independence

6 – 8 weeks

 

Mother in law

Walker wheel collapses

Tumble to the floor

89

Cracked hip, gashed elbow, leg

Pain

Hospital

 

Student client’s Mum

Forgot to clip in

40m

Thinks on the way down

“let me not be paraplegic, let me die”

But lives

Shattered ankle and humerus

School group nearby watch it all

 

30m abseil

Last section overhanging

Student watchers sing their buddies down

“I’m free, freefalling”.

 

 

With thanks to RadioLab