Destined by Gravity to Fail, We Try
Having fallen from the roof not once, but twice,
I verify that it is not the fall but the sudden stop that hurts.
The objectivist sense of the little: the and a, my house in this world.
Galileo postulated that gravity accelerates all falling bodies at the same rate.
While their etymologies differ, failure and fall share commonalities,
though terminal velocity is not one.
The distance between the glimpsed and the demonstrated.
Enthralled in the moment, Icarus drowned.
Rumor has it his plunge was due not to melting wax but to an improper mix
of rectrices and remiges: parental failure.
Thrust and lift. Drag. Resistance.
Acknowledgment of form in reality, in things.
When the produced drag force equals the plummeting object’s weight, the
object will cease to accelerate and will move at a constant speed.
To calculate impact force accurately, include the stopping distance in height.
Followed by long periods of silence.
This first appeared on the blog in December 2015.
O at the Edges 
Yikes – reading this after noting our gutters need to be cleaned (sunflower stem waving at us below) – maybe we’re old enough to justify hiring younger bodies to come assist? Pretty sure if I fell I’d come down faster than a feather let loose at same time … however the formulas work. [Won’t experiment!]
LikeLiked by 2 people
I hate the thought of hiring someone to clean my gutters. I’m able to. But as I’m already nursing several infirmities, I don’t think that standing on a ladder would be conducive to pain-free days. So annoying!
LikeLiked by 2 people
I’m thinking I’m old enough to abandon doing it all myself … encouraging husband to think similarly … that said, we’re both prone to impulse lunges at tasks we once did effortlessly but now ache for days after …
LikeLiked by 1 person
I remember reading this, and feeling that dread of hitting bottom. Both at the bottom of the stairs, and also parenting. So well crafted, and mysterious
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yep … as an old plumber, I can vouch for the sudden stopping conclusion … it’s very painful Robert !!!
LikeLike
I’ll bet you can, Ivor. Ouch!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes lots of ouch moments
LikeLike