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SNOHOMISH — As a child, Tessa Johnson would often dream of falling off things while taking naps on the floor.
“I would literally wake myself up and grab on to the rug,” she said.

Friday afternoon, the 38-year-old Lynnwood woman found herself jumping out of a plane, hooked in a harness to lead skydiving instructor Vladimir Ursachii of Skydive Snohomish at Harvey Field.
Johnson, who gets around via wheelchair, is paralyzed from the waist down because of spina bifida, a birth defect.
She decided to make the jump after her mother died last year. For all of her life, Johnson, an only child, was cared for by her mother. Now, the 61-pound Johnson lives in a Lynnwood adult family home.

She’s a big fan of country singer Tim McGraw, especially his song “Live Like You Were Dying.”

Before her mother died, it was just another song, Johnson said. Lately, it’s been a motivator.
“I lived with my mom for 37 years and she was not just like my mom but like my best friend,” she said.
Into a cloudless sky, the Cessna Caravan circled about 13,000 feet above Harvey Field.
On the ground, friends and family pointed up.

“I think she’s crazy,” said her aunt, Francis Weighall of Marysville. “She’s got a lot more nerve than I have.”

The jump had been postponed twice in the last couple of weeks because of poor weather and Johnson went from being excited to go, to wondering if she was ready, and back again. She first thought about a skydive while talking with friends a year ago. One friend who urged her on was Andrew Sussman. The Lynnwood man is also paralyzed, from a brain injury, but had gone sky jumping 16 times before his disability. “If I had the money, I would have gone with her,” he said, as he waited for her to descend.

Johnson said she sort of pooh-poohed the idea at first. “Then, all of a sudden a few months ago, I just decided what the heck?” Tandem jumps are recommended for any first-time skydiver, said Tyson Harvey, Skydive Snohomish’s operations manager. Johnson paid a $250 fee for the jump.

“On jumps where you’re handling all the responsibilities, you’re very focused because you have to be,” Harvey said. Before the jump, Johnson had a lesson on what to do and, on Friday afternoon, watched a training video. Her harness was specially fitted to secure her legs. As onlookers gazed up, a tiny, white speck suddenly became a multi-colored parachute as the duo descended, followed by instructor Kelly Craig, shooting video for Johnson.