ruwth is writing...

~ Sky Diving ~

Written for: "Three Perspectives Contest" 

I am using this Image Prompt:

My Story:

Have I mentioned that I'm deathly afraid of heights? Well, I am telling you now—I am!

As a child, I was afraid to be by the railing at the top of our staircase. My brother would torture me by sitting on the top rail, hooking his feet around the spindles , and waving his hands pretending to lose his balance.

Have you heard the expression: "white knuckling it"? The photo at the top of this item gives you a good visual of the epitome of white knuckling it. I remember the experience with such clarity, I can feel the fear even now!

It was my granddaughter Mikayla's eighteenth birthday and we were going sky-diving. We were suppose to jump together but things did not exactly go according to plans.

All the arrangements had been made over the phone. As we approached the airport on the pre-arranged date, this is what we saw:

At one time, the sign apparently said, "Haskell Airport". On October 11, 2015, it spelled DANGER! I swallowed hard and looked at my grand-daughter, "We don't have to jump here. We can find somewhere else."

Of course, if we had canceled, her first jump would not have been on her eighteenth birthday. She voted for us to forge ahead. As we drove in, we saw a row of hangers with something that looked like an attached residence at the end.

It was a combination residence and office. We entered and saw a skinny fella, coffee in hand, going in and out of the kitchen. There was a row of chairs along the wall and a desk at the end of the room.

After signing papers, I wrote a quick will, gave it to my son-in-law and prayed for Mikayla not to die on her eighteenth birthday.


Word Count per https://wordcounter.net/: 298 words.

Mikayla's Story:

My first thought as I open my eyes on my eighteenth birthday: "I'm going to jump out of an airplane today!" I have been so excited, I can't believe I even slept last night.

Granny made arrangements about six months ago. From then til now, I have been telling all my friends, "I am gonna go sky-diving on my birthday!" She will be here soon and the adventure will begin.

Oh dear, I'm so excited, I am talking non-stop as Granny drives us. I am riding with her but so many folks are coming to watch us jump! My mom and step-dad will be there. My other granny and my grandpa. Siblings. Friends. Cousins. Aunts. Uncles. So many people!

I'm glad I'm riding alone with Granny. This is her birthday present to me—and she is jumping, too! Sixty-three years old and she is gonna jump out of an airplane with me! Isn't that so cool!

Yikes, we're pulling in. This place looks pretty sketchy. Granny's having second thoughts. She just asked, "Do you want to go somewhere else?" Is she kidding? Sketchy or not, NOTHING will stop me from jumping today!

Ewww... The "office" is actually an apartment! Yeh, This place is way more than sketchy. As we walk in, I'm getting a bit anxious.

There's a skinny dude walking around smoking and drinking coffee. He's dressed in a flight suit. Is he the owner?

He is the owner. His whole family is here—and his dog! He greets me and shows me the harness I'll be using. Piglet is attached to the harness. He tells me his granddaughter gave him Piglet for protection on his jumps. Will Piglet protect me?

Granny's now non-stop praying in tongues. She's asking God to protect me. Probably better than Piglet, eh?


Word Count per https://wordcounter.net/: 299 words.

The Sky-Diving Instructor:

I wish I did not have to work today. Everybody always wants to jump on the weekend. Well, at least I have managed to make it worth my time—instead of just two jumpers (the old lady and her granddaughter), I have manage to book six other folks—eight jumps at five hundred a pop, today will be a good payday for me.

What the hell? How many people are coming to watch those two? I don't have enough room for all these folks! I definitely don't have enough chairs. I guess it will be standing room only.

Hmm... that eighteen-year-old is cute. What a sweetheart.

The old lady, not so much. She is asking a million questions and I think she just borrowed a pen and a piece of paper to write A WILL!

Maybe she should have thought of that ahead of time...

Word Count per https://wordcounter.net/: 145 words.

~ ~ ~ JESUS is LORD! ~ ~ ~