Freefall

Cool autumn weather has arrived to NY. So, I’ve begun preparing for colder temperatures by taking out my window fans and air conditioners. I called a friend to help me take out my really big, really heavy AC last Saturday. We moved the furniture away, took down the tape that was plugging the cracks and prepared to hang on to the unit when I opened the window.

We were hanging on with all our strength when I opened the window just a crack. In a split second, the AC took a dive out the window. Me? Well I guess I thought I had developed superhuman strength and tried to stop it. This included hanging on to the electrical cord with all my might as the AC plummeted to the concrete below. I can still see it falling. And I can still remember actually thinking I had stopped it when the plug slipped through my fingers. I won’t go into the details of what my fruitless efforts to save my air conditioner did to my hand. We’ll just say, I’ll have some scars to remember this event for quite some time.

My friend and I then went downstairs to assess the damage. Much to my surprise, most of the unit was still intact. In fact, with some repairs, this thing could actually work. There was no discernable damage to the coils or the compressor. It’s now sitting in my kitchen floor waiting for that trip to the repair shop.

Now, because I see most of life’s events through the lens of metaphors, I got to thinking about that air conditioner.

Something recently happened in my life that sent me in a free fall out of what I thought was a secure place in the world. I had no idea that the place I had made for myself was so tenuous and so dependent on one element in my life. The window opened just a tiny bit, and I went flying into what felt like an uncontrollable tailspin. I too saw a concrete slab below and expected to shatter into pieces when I landed. Funny thing is I didn’t. I mean, I have some sore places and some bruises, of course. But, the bottom line is, I didn’t fall apart. The core of me, the most important part of me, is intact, unbroken, and undiminished.

© Michelle Scott 2005