The surgical skydive

We have Thursday morning off before we take the flight back to Mumbairdquo my dad reminded me as we were winding up a oneweek workcation ldquoDo you have something specific yoursquod like to dordquoWe were in Australia invited to speak at the annual meeting of the Neurosurgical Society of Australasia in the lovely resort town of Port Douglas an hourrsquos drive from the relatively placid city of Cairns After completing our work assignments we took a few days off to visit the Daintree Rainforestmdash1200 sq km of wildlife habitat that is more than 180 million years old 10 million years older than the AmazonI contemplated the question he had just asked me ldquoLetrsquos go skydivingrdquo I suggested Lastminute weather problems meant that we missed doing it on our individual travels the year before Without batting his 78yearold eyelids he concurred ldquoBut let me check first if they have an age limitrdquo I hurriedly added ldquoWhat age limitrdquo he shot back ldquoIrsquom fitter and stronger than yourdquo It was indeed true Irsquom 42 and everything hurts every dayldquoHello is this Skydive Australiardquo I called making a booking for October 4 and enquiring about any of their stipulations for guests jumping off a plane from 15000 feet ldquoWe donrsquot have an upper age limitrdquo he confirmed politely ldquoas long as you donrsquot have a serious medical condition and are above 18 years of age and below 110 kgrdquo We met these criteria Our bookings were confirmed After having snorkelled Down Under in the Great Barrier Reef it was time to see what it looked like from a little higher upOn the designated radiant morning when the sun shone its golden whiskers through the turquoise Aussie skies a bus took us and three other fellow jumpers to the office where the first thing we did was sign a waiver If we died they would not be held responsible It was like taking consent before brain or spine surgery Only today did I realise the tumult of emotions that patients must feel every time we explain the risk of death to them but they sign the form trusting us in full faith Today we were the patients and we had to trust our diving doctorsAlso read SRA is building tinder boxesWe were shown a safety briefing video with gorgeous views from a Cessna biplane soaring up into the skies and people jumping off it like giant bird poop Olivia my diving instructor was going to do the tandem jump with me ldquoWhatrsquos the most common question people ask yourdquo I quizzed as she put on my harness doublechecking all the locks ldquoHas the parachute ever failed to openrdquo she replied ldquoHas itrdquo I asked with a little trepidation on the inside but sounding cheery and confident on the outside ldquoAh a couple of times materdquo she said casually ldquoBut we always have a standby so donrsquot worryrdquo she laughedldquoLetrsquos slay itrdquo she gestured as we took a picture and video together before walking on to the tarmac ldquoDo you wanna say your final goodbyes to people at homerdquo they always joke on record ldquoNot required wersquore coming back soon to haunt themrdquo I quippedldquoDoes this ever cause motion sicknessrdquo I asked the other instructors of their experience ldquoWersquove had a few people throw up midairrdquo Damien said unflustered even as he was on his fifth jump of the dayldquoThe first one minute is a free fall at 200 km per hour and then we open the parachute which lasts for about five to six minutes If itrsquos windy you can feel a little nauseousrdquo he warned munching on berriesDamien my dadrsquos instructor was a strong wellbuilt man with a golden beard and long hair He had four missing fingers on one hand ldquoSkydiving accidentrdquo he joked ldquoIrsquod happily take that if I only lost that much in a skydiving accidentrdquo I told him ldquoNahmdashgot chopped off by a saw while doing some carpentry as a kidrdquo he explained his voice muffled amid the roaring sound of the plane nearing us Just before boarding I tightened my shoelaces lest my shoes fly off and hit the person jumping behind me at 200 kmphThe five of us got onto the plane tagged to our instructors It had no seats just a lowlying flat couch one could hop on to and a sliding door that they closed way after the plane took off As we rose to 5000 feet and saw the panorama of the world below tiny ripples gradually started roaring in my stomach I could feel my heart race I wondered if this would match the adrenaline rush of performing a difficult surgerymdashone where there was profuse bleeding with the patientrsquos blood pressure crashing and monitors beepingldquoDo people ever refuse to jump after being airbornerdquo I joked around with Olivia as she did the final tightening of the harness onto hers and put on my goggles ldquoNow is not the time to be asking that question mate Once we slide the door up just remember what we rehearsed As we get to the edge of the plane curve your legs in arch your back make a banana and jump When I tap you on the shoulder pull your arms out wide like yoursquore soaringrdquo She gave me a final thumbs up as she tightened the GoPro camera fixed to her wrist to record an unforgettable adventureOnce we reached 15000 feet one of the instructors pulled the door open ldquo123 jumprdquo he went out with his jumper in a jiffy The cold wind blew straight into my face reminding me of my journey to the Everest Base Camp a few months ago Five seconds later the next person jumped off My heart was racing but I had a huge smile on my face ldquoWersquore nextrdquo Olivia slid me to the edge of the plane as I tucked my feet in and arched my back to her face the force of the wind trying to rip the skin off my face I felt like the animated version of Jim Carrey in The Mask I gave a thumbs up to my dad behind me Olivia screamed ldquo123 jumprdquo and we somersaulted outI didnrsquot know what had hit me but after the first three seconds I could vividly see the vast expanse of the horizon in front of me The clear sky with the glimmering sun shone sharp on us Suddenly all the rush disappeared and I experienced a sense of calm I have never felt in my life It was so surreal that I thought of my patients my family and my dear friends while plummeting into the clouds below us Even though I was plunging down at 200 kmph I felt like I was afloat suspended in space and time True freedom means not longing for anything to be other than what it is This is what freedom felt like I thought even though I was attached to Olivia We both smiled into the camera and took what looked like soothing pictures midairAs we descended into the clouds she pulled on the parachute and both of us transformed into eagles buoyant in the air enjoying the beauty of the terrain below with the Gods looking on above It was ethereal We swerved with the wind making gentle circles in the air chatting about surgery and skydivingmdashboth professions were never just another day at the officemdashas we gracefully approached our landing ldquoPull your knees into your chest and straighten your legsrdquo came the instruction as we made a smooth landing onto the soft verdant grassmdashthe sort of landing one would have never imaginedI quickly turned around to catch a glimpse of my dad who was 10 seconds behind me land right next to me We had experienced an adventure of a lifetime Both of us were grinning from ear to ear as we kissed and hugged each other once we were free from all the strappings ldquoPaisa vasoolrdquo were the first words that came out of his mouth I couldnrsquot agree moreThe writer is practicing neurosurgeon at Wockhardt Hospitals and Honorary Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery at Grant Medical College and Sir JJ Group of Hospitals