w h a t i t ' s l i k e
l u c k y
The very next moment of conscious awareness, you notice a shovel hitting your face, and air.
You breathe a deep breath. It feels good. You are happy. Very, very, happy. You are, in fact, exhilarated. You don't realize at this point that you have been under the snow for over 25 minutes.
As the rescuers move enough snow off your arms, you start to help them dig out your legs. You start to try
and get up. One of the guides, Jos, says, "don't move." You get that they're concerned you might be injured, so you move slowly, checking out how you feel. Legs work. Arms work.
You stand. You are shivering hard. You keep saying, "I am so glad to see you guys. I am so glad to see you guys." You look around. In the 27 minutes that have elapsed since the avalanche, most of the
he rest of the group of 15 skiers have arrived to help search, or dig. Later, the head guide tells you he was sure they were digging for a corpse.
“I am so glad to see you guys,” you say again.
They seem happy to see you, too.