Falling Down

connor-russo (64)in #life • 5 years ago

At the time of writing this is 03:38 a.m. of February 10, 2019

I've always been a careless guy, some say I waste my talent because of my carelessness, maybe those people are right, the problem is that this almost cost me my life a couple of times, I'm very aware of the consequences of my actions, but as dictated by Murphy's law "if something can go wrong, it will go wrong", The evening became night, the fog did not let me see beyond 1 or 2 meters, the roar stunned me, I remember being falling, and suddenly... darkness.

On October 27 I was in the city of Merida, Venezuela, I remember having gone out to train that day, getting tired to my residence as always, my phone rang, I always said that there are no good times to receive bad news, and that ... that was not a good time. I had a hard time falling asleep, tossing and turning in my bed, disappointed, tired ... it was not my day, it really was not my year. When I finally managed to sleep I did not stop having nightmares, in my dream I could see myself sleeping (maybe it's because of fear, but I have not dared to investigate the why of this, if someone reading this can really help me I would appreciate it ), although I do not remember that anymore.

On the morning of October 28, I woke up to go to school early, although I did not have the courage, that was my obligation. On the way to the university I met an old friend, we talked for a few minutes, that day we both went back to the town so we decided to leave together, I was a little late so I accelerated and got to the university, my head was chaotic, I could not stop thinking about that bad news from the previous night, I do not even remember what class I was alone in. I started to draw in my notebook and decided to ignore the rest of the world for a while. I said goodbye to my colleagues at 1 p.m. approximately and I started my trip back home, a trip of about 5 hours, I sent a damn message before the transport started, a message that still remember with bitterness...

The traffic was terrible, at approximately 5:30 in the afternoon we were not even close to reaching the middle of the road, I was anxious to get there, I could not wait, I did not want to wait, by chance my friend recognized a neighbor's vehicle his, and we got off the transport relieved knowing that we would get a little faster home ... Crass error. From this point I remember perfectly the time of what happened. At 7:05 in the afternoon the vehicle crashed in the middle of the Andean Mountains, the fog was thick, I could not see 5 meters of road, the cold was unbearable, it seemed a very bad situation however I was not worried, I just wanted to get home, it was the only thing I thought...

The vehicle ignited at 7:21, at that time I uploaded a photo to my whatsapp state where the road was seen losing itself in the fog, and from that moment the paranoia began, that feeling that something bad was happening, it was not something I could ignore, my friend noticed and did not hesitate to ask me ... Are you okay, Joel? The afternoon turned into night, the fog did not let me see beyond 1 or 2 meters, the rumble stunned me, I remember falling, and suddenly ... darkness. I saw myself flying through the air, I could see my feet and my hands pointing to the sky, I heard a boy scream my name, everything was so relative, I could see my mother in the kitchen of my house, I could see my father smoking a cigarette in the yard, so close, so far, so fleeting ... it was only an instant, so short that I did not have time to react, although at the same time, it seemed a whole life, it is true that life goes on to our eyes in a life or death situation, I fell before the vehicle (this was a cargo vehicle and we were in the back, specifically on the side of the gorge) when I opened my eyes I saw the cold metal pass so close to me, flying imposing a couple of meters of the ground, indomitable, so violent, the vehicle passed very close to my head while I just watched without being able to move, I saw it fall about 3 meters from me and then continue rolling down the gorge, stopping about 50 meters ahead, I could not react, death came so close that he could give me a cold kiss on the cheek, the night became absolute and the fog began to dissipate, everything was so slow, I felt so peaceful ... ironic, was not it? After the rumble of the fall the absolute silence, just like life, just like death ... I ran down the gorge trying to find my friend, and there he was, trapped between the metal and the stones, although I live by luck, he managed to get out of there with some difficulty, and suddenly a nearby cry of help was heard...the driver was lying on the ground quite hurt, although not as much as his father who was lying unconscious with a big head wound still inside the car. I ran up the gorge to get help, people started to appear from the houses around, ran towards the accident, passed by my side without even looking at my face, at that moment I thought I was dead, I panicked, I tried I looked for my bag in the middle of all that chaos, and when I found it, I remembered that it was not the only thing I brought. I saw two paintings that were smashed on the ground, crushed by the fury of steel, and next to them part of me...I suppose if I died a little that night...

I took this photo near the site of the accident, a sample of the inclement weather of the Andean Mountains and the winding roads that cross it

One hour later I managed to get to the town, the people who took me immediately went to the hospital (almost obliged) which today I greatly appreciate, some doctors were good friends of mine, I do not remember much of this but I know that my mother came running a few minutes later, and next to it, two of my uncles, one of whom gave me a coat that I have kept to this day (and I almost always use it).

This story is totally real, it is a very difficult moment in my life, these events took place on the Trasandina Highway, while traveling from the city of Mérida to the town of Timotes.