VIBE CHECK: Everyone ready for the ending to begin? "You met Q at a very strange time in my life."
(media.patriots.win)
THE FIRST RULE Q CLUB IS:
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While we're sharing stories, here's a surfing one haha!
That "letting go" feeling is extraordinary. I had a near drowning experience when I was 18/19 yo. I was surfing the biggest waves I'd been in up until that point in my life. Wasn't experienced enough to properly deal with a wipeout that drove me deep underwater, So deep that everything went black. I was completely disorientated, didn't know which way was up, swimming in the blackness in all directions and unable to find the surface. I was panicking. Then something happened. I felt that same euphoric calm you alluded to. I'd accepted my fate. Moments later my foot touched the bottom. I snapped back to reality. You described it so well, "100mph and slammed to a halt". Finally I knew which way was up. Many kicks and strokes later I broke the surface, coughing and spluttering. I was underwater, it felt like, forever.
Fast forward a few years and I'm surfing WAY larger waves at a sketchy reef break in the South Pacific. I was by myself. The biggest wave I'd ever encountered reared up in front of me. I thought I was in the perfect spot and scratched into it as hard as I could. I didn't quite make the drop, the nose of my board dug in and I went down, then up and over the falls, then DEEP down into the blackness again. This time was different though. This time that feeling of calm came over me immediately. I maintained that calm until eventually I got my bearings and found my way to the surface. No big deal. Thankfully I didn't slam the live coral reef. Anyway, afterwards I bumped into to a bloke who unbeknownst to me had seen the wipeout from the cliff. He thought I had died. Apparently I was under for a LONG time, the second wave of the set actually rolled over me before I came up.
So I guess my story is about perspective and attitude in potentially life threatening situations. Essentially- Try your best to stay calm and, DON'T panic :)
Also, that's an insane story... especially to have two very similar experiences. So when you experienced that feeling of slamming to a halt, did you "hear" a big "snap" sound right before you regained consciousness?
I would probably describe it best as my 'euphoric drifting away consciousness' being jolted back into my body the instant my foot touched that sand deep underwater. That's how I related to your 100 mph - halt analogy. I don't recall hearing anything, I may have though, it happened over 30 years ago.
Bingo. Panic only ever results in bad things