Surprised

The trampoline threw me up. For a second, I was helpless. I flailed in the air.

It was a Friday evening in fall, and the air was heavy and intoxicating to breathe. The night held rain and I could feel it. It felt like how it feels to have a tissue in your pocket. You could cut it like a birthday cake.
My birthday cake was chocolate and it sat on the table in front of me. It was the night of my surprise party. My friends stood around in a circle and sang “Happy Birthday” and watched me blow out the candles. I was in the middle of thanking them all for coming when the ring of people collapsed on me. They hoisted me up onto their shoulders and carried me around and tossed me up and…

I came back down again. I liked the trampoline because I never knew where it would throw me. But I could trust that it would catch me. A trampoline can really surprise someone.