Being Weightless
The auditorium was dark. Each seat appeared to be filled. Heather sat a couple rows to the front. She wore a black dress. Zach was one of the last to be seated. He was near the back in a polo shirt that was red. His khaki pants shook with nerves. His brown leather shoes tapped, anticipating the event to begin.
The stage light turned on. Focusing on a red haired woman at a podium. She tapped on the mike, then introduced herself.
" I am Gertrude Goodnite. Welcome to the simplest complex camp in the world! Today we will show you a series of what if situations. Each of you was given a piece of paper and pencil. Write down how one should solve these problems. Since a destination is not selected yet, these questions may seem random. I will assure you that this is the best way to establish your skill in adaptability. We want to avoid death. Now wait for your turn to be called…"
An hour has passed.
Heather stands up. She has a number sticker on her outfit reading "42". She enters a small room that is pitch black. She feels around her. Her fingertips begin contacting a chair. She sits in it. Then a lamp is turned on and a clipboard handed to her. The clipboard has paper and pencil on it.
" First question: You land in a field full of flowers. These flowers are not identifiable. You are touching one. What information can you gather from this?"
Heather pondered on how to respond. She quickly wrote down, "..if I am allergic, the flower's physical defenses, and how to describe its texture…"
" Second question: Two cars are available to give you a ride. One is red, the driver appears sleepy. The other is blue, the driver has a can of beer in the cup holder. He is awake. What do you do?"
Heather reworded the question as well as found a solution to it. She identified the real question as " Do I need to go anywhere? Besides, riding in either car is unsafe."
2 hours later.
In a different room, sat number 547, Zach, he was on his last question: You are confronted with a lion in a savanna. You only have a little food left. You know you are not capable of surviving if it attacks. What do you do? He scribbled down, " Drop all extra weight including food. Walk slowly back and accept death is possible."
Zach joined Heather in a small room with four others. The room had high ceilings. A door was just below the ceiling, several poles sticking out of the walls. The door closes behind Zach. Click!! The door is locked.
"This is Ms. Goodnite! I hope everyone is having fun. As you probably discovered, you are locked inside a room. Your final test in this interview is getting out!"
A Hispanic guy turned and tried the door on the ground. Reactions varied. One woman, in a soldier's uniform, began rubbing the walls for cracks or buttons. She knocked on it as well to determine how sturdy it is. A red haired man wearing large glasses had a different plan which was to roll in a ball panicking. A blonde girl (Heather) reached out for the lowest hanging pole. It was around two feet taller than her. One tall man with a chocolate brown complexion acted like an ape by grabbing poles and swinging his body onto another pole. He probably watched the apes at the zoo or is an expert at obstacle courses.
The blonde girl began talking with the red haired man in beetle position. He looked at her as if only parts of what she was saying was getting through the ear. The tall man was midway to the door near the ceiling. He laughed and showed off a bit. First he held his weight with one arm and waved at us below with his free hand. He whistled, like a man does at an attractive waitress, to get the women to look at him.
The grip on the pole loosened with each bragging action. He extended his free arm to the next pole. His fingers were now tired and wet. His grip opened up more on the pole. His other hand could barely touch his target with the tips of his fingers. His hands are so slippery, it was forced open. He fell, ramming into poles on the way down. He landed on his left thigh. SNAP! He let out a scream. His face puffed up with tears.
Above the door opened. The scream of pain was heard. "This is Ms. Goodnite. To avoid further injuries, we realized we forgot to have the doorway open. Mr. Sanders, we have the ambulance coming to get you."
The blonde girl approached me. Behind her was the woman soldier, red headed man, and the Hispanic guy. She states the obvious, "I have a plan to get out. We would need to work together. Can you join us?" I was strongly persuaded to join. She is a cute girl as well as I did not want to fall breaking something like the tall man.
"What do I need to do?" I catechized.
"Jerry (the Hispanic guy) and I are going to form a step like a ladder with our arms. You will assist us up after you jump and climb inside the doorway. Monica (the woman soldier) will also be jumping up to pull us inside the doorway. Oh! I am Heather by the way," the blonde girl retorted.
The Plan was working well. I just managed to get hold of the doorway. After I got in there, Monica was just getting ready to follow. The red haired man got up and pushed her aside. As he jumped he grabbed a pole without thinking. Monica tried again. I stood in the doorway on my knees. She was short. Luckily, I was there to get her hand and tugged upward. She was a little heavier than I thought, but I got her inside.
Jerry was taking off his tie and belt. He handed those items to Heather. Someone needed to be pulled up. The red haired man was like a cat stuck in a tree.
Pedro and Heather looked up. Monica had turned around. She waved below to let the team know she is in position. Planning ahead, I already started getting my belt off me. This will help make a rope to pull Pedro up.
Jerry put his hands together to make a step to assist as a boost for Heather's . Heather took a few steps back. She ran towards Jerry's hands. As she placed her foot on his hands, Jerry flung her up. Timing her jump right when Jerry had his arms fully extended up, Heather leapt. I grabbed one hand and Monica the other. I was staring into her ocean blue eyes. Once she was all the way in, we got Jerry up.