“My ears keep popping. Are yours bothering you?” I asked my little sister, who was seated in the aisle seat of our row on the plane.
“Yes, mine keep popping too. It’s a little…” she was unable to finish her sentence before the plane started plummeting. The oxygen masks dropped from the overhead compartment. We looked at each other, dumbfounded.
That’s not supposed to happen.
Despite watching the stewardesses go through their spiel hundreds of times, I had no idea what to do. I was frozen, staring at the mask hanging in my face.
I was jolted from my stupor by the flight attendant as she ran from the back to the front of the plane screaming “Put on your oxygen masks! Put them ON NOW!”
Suddenly images flashed in my mind.
Pull the mask towards your face. Cup over nose. Elastic over the head. Tighten elastic. Tug plastic line to ensure oxygen is flowing.
Breathe.
Breathe.
Breathe slower! I was nearly hyperventilating.
I looked out the window. I saw no smoke. No sign of fire or explosion.
But the plane was still descending rapidly. The ground was getting closer.
I felt a tear slide down my cheek.
My sister Gayle grabbed my hand and held it in hers. I looked at her and saw her own fears mirrored in her eyes.
At least if I was going to die today, I was holding on to my best friend, and I would not have to face death alone.
The plane was eerily quiet with the exception of the sounds of the flight attendant running back and forth.
No one screamed as they do in the movies. I could not bring myself to utter a sound.
I prayed. About random things.
I prayed that my older sister would be able to find where we left her car in the Charleston Airport parking lot.
I prayed that Gayle’s fiance would find another love and not spend his life alone.
I wondered if it would hurt.
I worried about my father, who would likely already be on his way to Omaha to pick us up.
Finally, what seemed like hours later, the plane began to level out and the Captain addressed all of the passengers.
He informed us that there had been a mechanical issue, the plane had depressurized, and as a result, it had been necessary to bring the plane down quickly from over 30,000 feet to under 15,000 feet. We would be landing shortly at the nearest airport.
That information would have been useful about 3 stressful minutes earlier.
I realized I was still breathing fast and heavily into the oxygen mask. I was lightheaded once we were able to remove them.
Suddenly I burst into uncontrollable laughter. I looked at my sister, and she started laughing too. As did the people in the seats all around us. We began to share our stories of fear and panic, immediately bonded by our “near death” experience.
We laughed about the fact that not a soul on the plane even moved when the masks dropped.
We laughed about the hysterical flight attendant.
We shared the ridiculous thoughts that entered our minds in the moments we thought we were going to crash.
But mostly we laughed out of relief. We were going to live.
I was given a gift that day. In a three minute time frame, I learned the value of life.
Chris Carter says
July 9, 2013 at 12:37 pmAhhhh…. such a GREAT story Alexa!!! Definitely worthy of Yeah Write choice!!! Those moments change us, don’t they?
katbiggie says
July 9, 2013 at 1:19 pmThanks Chris! We’ll see if I get the votes! Make sure you go vote for me on Thursday! 🙂
Ilene says
July 9, 2013 at 12:44 pmOh my gosh. My heart was pounding through this one. Clearly I knew your survived, BUT….that must have been awful and scaring and life changing for sure.
katbiggie says
July 9, 2013 at 1:20 pmI know!!! My heart still pounds as I think about it!
Janine Huldie says
July 9, 2013 at 1:01 pmWow, I know my mom and dad had the engines fail on a plane that they were flying back on from Mexico, when I was a little girl. My mom still talks about this experience and for a long time she wouldn’t fly again. I did know you survived of course, but you really had a great attitude about what I just happened. Seriously, I am not sure how I would react, but you definitely are so brave in my eyes!!
katbiggie says
July 9, 2013 at 1:21 pmTrust me, I did NOT want to get back on the next plane that had to take us the rest of our journey. I was terrified the whole time. And then, ironically, a year later I joined the Air Force. Terrified to fly… irony.
Gayle Haddock says
July 9, 2013 at 2:36 pmAwesome post – you captured the experience perfectly! I re-lived it as if it was just yesterday. Clearly (and thankfully) God had other plans for us that day! I’m glad we survived and can look back and laugh at it. I forgot about the car being parked at the Charleston airport, but I do recall a night spent on the floor of the St. Louis(?) airport. Not one of my finer traveling experiences!
Love you!
katbiggie says
July 9, 2013 at 4:02 pmYes, I remember that too. That was the worst part of the trip by far! Love you too!
Marcy says
July 9, 2013 at 3:07 pmWhat a dramatic story! I can’t even imagine the panic I would have felt. Amazing.
katbiggie says
July 9, 2013 at 4:01 pmI can still remember every emotion and feeling that went through me, even though it was 13 years ago. Panic was one of MANY emotions!
Shanique Roca says
July 9, 2013 at 3:42 pmWow that is so scary. I would have refused to get on another plane. I don’t know how I would have made my way home but I would find a way.
It’s funny the things that flash through your mind in a situations like that. And its funny that laughter is how we deal with those situations.
katbiggie says
July 9, 2013 at 4:00 pmSo true. But that relief (and I might have been a tiny bit high from inhaling so much straight O2!!!) just made us all a little giddy. I did NOT want to get on the next plane. As it turned out, it was a holiday weekend, and they couldn’t find another plane that evening, so we wound up sleeping on the floor in the airport. After that, another plane was a welcome sight!!
Joe says
July 9, 2013 at 4:17 pmI don’t particularly like flying anymore and you’re not helping any.
katbiggie says
July 9, 2013 at 4:19 pmWell, the good news is that the statistics of being in an emergency situation/crash are very low… whew.
that cynking feeling says
July 9, 2013 at 4:30 pmWow-my heart began to race. I knew everything must have been okay because you are here to write about it, but that wasn’t easy to remember as you described the experience. I’m glad that no one was hurt.
Idiosyncratic Eye says
July 9, 2013 at 4:59 pmOh my days, so, so scary. I’m glad that you were at least able to laugh about it afterwards. 🙂
katbiggie says
July 9, 2013 at 5:24 pmAt that point, there was nothing else we could do. At least laughing felt good!
Robbie says
July 9, 2013 at 5:03 pmWOW!! I’ve never been afraid of flying but the last few flights have altered that a bit. When I flew in April the Captain YELLED at everyone to sit down and buckle up. I remember thinking “Really is this how it’s all going to end?”
katbiggie says
July 9, 2013 at 5:23 pmOh no! My concern over flying just grows as they cut budgets and try to do more with less…
another jennifer says
July 9, 2013 at 9:00 pmOh my gosh, Alexa! What a story. I can’t imagine being so close to what seems like death. How scary. It’s amazing how we can laugh at these moments after the fact. I guess that’s our way of getting through. Crazy!
katbiggie says
July 9, 2013 at 10:11 pmI know. I think it was part hysteria… being that terrified, you have to sort of let it all out.
Dana says
July 9, 2013 at 9:25 pmGlad I read this after my vacation, Alexa! I may not have gotten on that plane…
katbiggie says
July 9, 2013 at 10:10 pmMe too Dana!!! I’m on my way to read all about your trip!
Ice Scream Mama says
July 9, 2013 at 9:48 pmall it takes is a moment of true fear to put everything in total perspective. that was a good one. i loved, “that’s not supposed to happen.” so real.
Pam Huggins says
July 9, 2013 at 9:58 pmWow! That’s really frightening. I’m so glad it had a good ending and I’m glad you found something positive in it.
Mary @ A Teachable Mom says
July 9, 2013 at 11:02 pmEven though I suspected you survived, I was terrified reading this. I love that you bonded over laughter with the other passengers and hope you bought a lottery ticket after that ride. What a story!
Kim at Mama Mzungu says
July 10, 2013 at 12:56 amWow. Stunning. I always wonder – literally every time I hear that shpiel – if I’d ever remember the instructions I’ve heard hundreds of times when the moment came. Thanks for sharing such a shocking and life changing moment!
christina says
July 10, 2013 at 8:46 amholy crap! I mean, wow. I just can’t imagine how scary that was– but I think you did an exceptionally well job of making me feel that fear, and relief, in a very short post. And oddly, I started laughing at the end too. Great writing.
renée a. schuls-jacobson says
July 10, 2013 at 10:32 amIt’s taken me forever, but I’m finally making the rounds. I can’t believe this happened to you! HOLY CRAP! How weird that we both wrote about flying. And this is sooo scary. I was going to ask if it was real, but I can tell from the comments that this was not fiction. Good for you for turning something traumatic into something beautiful.
Misty says
July 10, 2013 at 11:01 amThis is gorgeous! What a lesson to learn. I always feel like I would freak out if ever those masks dropped down. I’ve flown so much that I just tune out the instructions now. I think I need to not know that it’s a possibility, or I won’t be able to relax on the flight. If I think about the fact that we are hovering 30,000 feet in the air in a tin can, relying on a few skilled individuals to do their jobs and hopefully not have had a bad day when they were welding something into place/flying the plane . . . yeah. I’m very happy that you and your sister survived to tell the tale.
Larks says
July 10, 2013 at 8:25 pmHow scary! I loved this post. The ending was perfection.
katbiggie says
July 11, 2013 at 5:40 pmThank you!
Tamara says
July 10, 2013 at 8:55 pmWhoa, girl! I almost couldn’t breathe reading this. My ex was in a similar situation when he was a teen. The plane sorta crash landed but it was already pretty low enough that no one was seriously hurt. When the plane crashed into the ground, the oxygen masks all fell down and it was so ludicrous that he just started laughing and laughing. Then two scared little kids near him saw him laughing and they started laughing. Later on in the airport, their mother stopped my ex to thank him for laughing – it apparently really helped the little kids!
katbiggie says
July 11, 2013 at 5:40 pmWow… crash landing is even more intense! So glad he was ok!
Kristen Daukas says
July 10, 2013 at 10:27 pmHoly cow. I can’t imagine. Ever since having kids, I prefer to have both feet on the ground. I’ll fly but there’s always “that” fear. And to be a kid and go thru it?!
katbiggie says
July 11, 2013 at 5:40 pmI am terrified of flying since having children as well. I’m so scared of leaving them before they are old enough to remember me!
Jen--Real Life Parenting says
July 11, 2013 at 1:28 amWow!! Just wow!! Someone else said this too, but even knowing you survived to tell the tale, I was nervous. I found myself reading faster and faster to see what happened!! 🙂
Michelle says
July 11, 2013 at 8:00 amOh Alexa, I can’t even imagine. My heart dropped just reading this! Experiences like this makes you realize just how precious life really is!
katbiggie says
July 11, 2013 at 5:39 pmNo doubt! It was terrifying!
deborah quinn says
July 11, 2013 at 10:54 amTerrifying..and then also I can totally understand the wild laughter. But then I have to think what I would do, REALLY, if those oxygen masks dropped. After all those thousands of instructions, would I remember? I’m going to pay a LOT more attention on the next flight!
katbiggie says
July 11, 2013 at 5:39 pmI just hope you never have to recall the directions!
Natalie DeYoung says
July 11, 2013 at 4:30 pmIt’s funny how laughter is such a relieving expression, even in a crisis. I too would have laughed.
Glad you’re okay!
katbiggie says
July 11, 2013 at 5:39 pmLaughter is often my response… in crisis, happiness, sadness. I think it’s one of the greatest defense mechanisms God gave me.
Linda Roy says
July 11, 2013 at 5:36 pmScary. Heartpounding. Life changing. Great story and I’m glad you’re okay!
katbiggie says
July 11, 2013 at 5:38 pmThank you! Me too!
Lanaya | Raising Reagan says
July 15, 2013 at 5:15 pmWow, what an experience. Thank you for sharing Alexa.
Thank you for linking to Raising Imperfection.
Please come back Friday to see if you were featured. 🙂
¤´¨)
¸.•*´
(¸¤ Lanaya | xoxo
Raising-Reagan.com
Leslie says
July 17, 2013 at 5:40 pmYikes! That is so super scary!!!
Thank you for linking up to Raising Imperfection! We appreciate you taking the time to link up, make sure to check back on Friday when we feature out favorites.
Leslie
http://www.violetimperfection.com
katbiggie says
July 17, 2013 at 10:19 pmIt was terrifying!