FredPeyer

Last Thoughts

Toes curling around the edge of the flat roof

24 stories, 242 feet above the sidewalk

He had studied it and knew it would take

Four seconds to hit the ground at 70 mph

He would be dead 4 seconds after jumping

What he didn’t know was what he would think

In these 4 seconds while accelerating to 70 mph

Would, as they say, his life flash before his eyes?

Cramming 40 years of life into 4 seconds,

One second per 10 years, seemed impossible

He hated his life, so why re-live it?

Maybe he should sing, or recite a poem

Anything to keep his life from flashing

Or maybe he would be so scared his

Mind would be empty except for the scream

Would he think about the impact, on how

It would be to hit the sidewalk at 70 mph?

Would he feel anything? Anything at all?

Would he have an out-of-body experience,

Hover above and see himself get splattered?

He willed himself to take a step forward

But instead took a step backwards

Four seconds was way too long!