Plunge

I stared downward. Below me lay a twenty-foot drop, but from my perch atop a sandy red cliff, it felt ten times closer to the drifting clouds. Around me, red life-vest clad classmates nervously chatter, debating whether or not to take the leap. Just do it! Others chant, cheering for those closest to the edge. I hear the splash of a life vest, swim trunks, and flailing limbs shattering the glassy surface of the piercing green river. I look over just in time to catch another plummeting flash of color hit the water. Moments later, their sodden heads bob above the surface, emerging from the murky rush. Their eyes are bright with adrenaline and their voices thick with giddy smiles and jittery laughter. The two dark brown heads drift downstream, cradled by the gentle current.

I turn my gaze to the horizon. Towering above us are sandy orange cliffs watching the flowing dance of the Colorado. Their flattened tops and rockslide sides nestle our scattered parade of crowded rafts, inflatable kayaks, and stand up paddleboards. I look back down, studying the water. It’s reflective ripples swell, ebbing and flowing as it pleases. It’s color, though rounded off with a deep brown, have soft highlights of wet-grass-green, and punctuated with an occasional flash of washed out apricot, mimicking the monuments above. Occasionally, brown swirls of dry needles and fallen leaves on the surface will spiral below the shelf of sandstone we are plunging from. Above us, the clouds meander across the old-jean-colored sky, creating a patchwork of light and dark.

I feel my foot steady itself against the edge of the stone. I glance left, then right, making sure not to collide with anyone mid-fall. As if a final decision, I let out a sigh of resignation. I push off my back foot, and leap into empty space. I feel a drop in my stomach, and a tingle of adrenaline in the empty place below my belly button. As if by instinct, I fill my chest with air in a final gasp. I capture the moment in my head, of air rushing, adrenaline flashing, and water approaching. Before I know it, my body splashes into the river. The cool solid aqua surrounds my body and a couple white flashes of bubbles erupt to the surface. Though my eyes are closed, I can feel the blueness of the soupy, all-encompassing pressure. It seems like minutes before my head breaks surface. The slight breeze tickles my slippery face, and a smile breaks out on my lips. I laugh, sitting back as the steady current nudges me along. Let’s do it again!

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