STUPID

Lowell was my older brother's buddy in the Army, and after they got out, Lowell moved to Washington to live near my brother. Lowell was (and still is, I'm sure) a great guy. My brother, Paul, and Lowell and I hiked to the peak of Mount Sauk (an awesome adventure including one of the seven times my life was saved). Lowell also had a BMW R50 motorcycle and would let me borrow it to ride and enjoy.

One day when I was riding with Lowell on his BMW, we stopped at a park that had a little playground, including a horizontal bar. I told Lowell that the horizontal bar always scared me in P.E. at school, and he poo-pooed that silliness, saying I had nothing to be afraid of. He finally talked me into sitting on the top of the bar, about eight feet or so off the ground. I was petrified. Lowell said, "Just hang on and fall back. As long as you're hanging on you'll be all right." So, gathering all my courage but hunching over in fear, I gripped the bar with all my might, closed my eyes, and fell back.

It felt like I was spinning, but I held on tight. Then...WHAM! I was lying on my back on the hard-packed dirt, staring up at the bar way up there, and not able to breathe. Lowell was saying, "Don't move, just relax. You knocked your wind out. Relax and your breathing will come back."

My head hurt, my back hurt, I was gasping for air, wondering how I could have fallen when I was positive I was gripping the bar the whole time. I was also pretty disillusioned about Lowell, for not breaking my fall. Eventually I could breathe again, got up, and Lowell and I continued our day.

Moral of the story:  Don't do anything stupid, even if you trust the guy telling you to.




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