We were spiraling fast. The front was getting closer and closer to the rivers surface. Impact in 3...2... . Wait, I should explain how I got here. It all started a few hours ago:

I had been waiting for so long. After what seemed like an hour, I was handing my boarding pass to the lady behind the desk and in return received a small ticket. Stuffing the ticket into my left pocket, I excitedly started moving towards the plane door. It was my first time ever flying, from Pakistan to America.

The plane was slowly gathering speed. I had luckily got the window seat. However, I was unluckily seated next to a mother and her crying baby. Suddenly, my stomach dropped; I had zoned out so much I did not even notice the seamless lift off till after it had happened. I looked out and saw the city lights getting farther and farther and smaller and smaller. It was nighttime so I closed the window and tried to get some shut eye.

Other than the two to three times I was woken up by the baby's wines, I managed to get a solid 8 hours of sleep. Upon waking up, a flight attendant came to a stop in front of my row with a trolley. She handed me a sealed aluminum box. Disgruntled, I shifted myself upright and opened the box to find some incredibly unappealing rice and lentils. As I doubled down on the bland food, I stared outside and admired the beautiful fluffy white clouds.

My eyes began to hurt as I suddenly stared at the small screen fixed into the back of the seat in front of me. I glanced outside and saw the skyscrapers of New York City coming into view. My mind wandered, and I began to wonder how insane the business people must be. Flying from country to country every month for business trips trapped in this large aluminum tube, isolated from family and friends. I was snapped back to reality when I saw clouds of smoke surrounding the plane’s wing. Everyone brace for impact. We’re going down, screamed the pilot over the PA. All the screens went blank and the lights went dark as the plane powered down. The aluminum bird went for a straight nose dive for the ocean. At the last second, the pilot pulled up, leading to a rough touchdown on the water, but it was a safe landing.

Hours later, I stood on the coast wrapped in towels, shook to the core. What an experience.