According to Associated Press, a base jumper survived a 260-metre fall (853 feet to you and me!) from the top of an Australian waterfall Sunday after his parachute failed to open properly, an official said. The man suffered a suspected broken leg and pelvis and internal injuries after his parachute only partially opened before he hit water. A spokeswoman for Emergency Management Queensland said, "The water would have felt like concrete when he landed." Now that's some fun there!
For the uninformed, base jumping is a sport (loosely defined anyway) where an idiot, excuse me...person straps on a parachute & hurls himself off a seriously high prefaces. You know: a building, a cliff, a humongous bridge etc. Before hitting the ground & turning into a greasy spot, he pulls the chute & hopes for the best.
Granted, I have done my share of certifiably stupid things. I don't have a death wish but I've hit the thrill rides several times in my life with things ranging from parasailing to Australian rappelling. Again for the uninformed, that's where an idiot (i.e.: me) straps on repel gear & jumps face first off a cliff. All the blood runs to your head & it feels like it will explode. I blame most of these actions on a head injury from a brick to my frontal lobe when I was around ten!
I'll have to admit, probably the most stupid thing I ever did was free hand climbing. Again to the uninformed, that's where an idiot (i.e.: me) starts climbing up a rock cliff without the aid of ropes or intelligence. I had a group of college students in the mountains, as we were preparing for an upcoming mission trip. We climbed a series of cliffs that rose up around 50 feet. The odd formations had small canyons, for lack of a better word, about 8-10 feet apart with a sandy base between them. I was about 20 feet up on a wall when I realized that I could go no higher. I couldn't see where to put my feet. No, it wasn't because my gut got in the way. I was on an overhang/outcrop. Mind you, at twenty feet you have to work at getting killed, but I was concerned that if I fell backward I would crack the back of my skull on the adjacent wall with a possible permanent headache and or losing what little intelligence I had at that point.
I called for my wife's help in where to put my feet. I had to call several times as she was on the ground rolling laughing at her 'adventurous' husband. After several pleas for help & outbursts on my part, she finally responded (only after taking several pictures of my posterior protruding into space) & told me where to put my hands & feet to get to safety.
While on the wall I made that familiar prayer to God. You know, the one when you're on a stupid amusement park ride & you say, "Dear GOD! If you get me off this I promise I'll never get on it again!" You don't. You simply get on a different kind of insane ride. To make matters worse, one of my collegians was also in distress around the corner of the cliff & I couldn't go to his aid because I was stuck with my hiney hanging out in space. I could just hear the conversation to his mother: "I'm truly sorry that he fell to his death. You see, I couldn't help him because I was hanging by my fingernails & prayer on the other rock. But I DID scoop up what was left of him for you & brought him home in his backpack." I’m sure I’ve told this story before, but when you do something that stupid you need to get some mileage out of it for all the embarrassment & face you loose!
I think you get the picture. Sometimes, we get ourselves into really stupid, precarious situations. Sometimes our guardian angels have to clock in major overtime to keep our keisters clear of death! While all of this may be glib & lighthearted, I almost bought the farm today. I was heading back to the office when an 18-wheeler ran a stop sign & almost plowed into me. It stopped within a foot from my little Sentra before squashing me like so much tin foil. If it didn't kill me at the least I'd be wearing a permanent Mack emblem on the side of my skull!
I'm thankful God watches over us. Can't TELL you how many times He's pulled me back from death. Not imagined or almost, but certain death. I'll not drone on with numerous accounts, but suffice it to say there are many. The Psalmist said, “My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth! He will not let you stumble; the one who watches over you will not slumber. Indeed, he who watches over
You know, if the Mack truck had cut short my life, it would simply jump start eternity. While that’s not how I want to head to heaven, I’m ready. Please make sure you have your eternity settled.
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ASUN website www.bcmasunewport.org
Dave Jackson-Campus Minister djackson@absc.org cell 870-217-9376
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