the long fall

i crest a hill, and watch the pavement drop out below me. it's a long, screaming pitch towards the bottom, and i know the best way through is to roll on the throttle, hurtling flesh and metal towards that distant point. my stomach pushes up towards my ears, like all the times i went higher on the swings as a kid than i really wanted.

i remember that trick, when you pull hard on the chains at the top of your swing and get yourself a moment of freefall on the way down, thudding hard as the chains catch you again. i'd pinch my palms between the metal links, screaming until i came back to the ground. i never liked it, but i kept doing it.

it's always hard to remind myself that the safest thing to do is to go faster. if you're scared, go faster. if you're nervous, go faster. if you can't see, go faster. go faster, and the world blurs as it flies by, and you have fewer things you can meaningfully respond to.

17 June 2018 00:10