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From the New York Times and WBUR Boston, this is Modern Love.

Stories of Love, loss and redemption. I'm your host, Megna Chakrabardi.

Nothing teaches a person more about what's important and who's important than a near-death experience.

But it can also leave us wondering how important we are as it did for Catherine Friedman Holland.

Catherine Keener reads her story. She's known for her Oscar-nominated performances in the films Being John Malcovic and Capote.

Here she is with Catherine Friedman Holland's essay Live Without Me. I'll understand.

We are flying to a resort south of Cancun for the wedding of my husband's cousin.

As we rise into the cloudless Los Angeles sky, I try, as always, to suppress my unease.

I have always been afraid of flying, but today I am tired enough to dose off as we make our way south.

Just over an hour into the flight, there is a slight bump followed by a distinct click as overhead panels fall open and the oxygen mass unfurl.

And the plane begins to plunge.

This is an emergency. Please put on your oxygen mask and fasten feet though. This is an emergency.

I look pleadingly at my husband of six months. It's okay, he says. Just as he has on so many other flights when I panic at an unfamiliar noise or dip, we are going to be okay.

This time is different. The plane is racing downward. My seatbelt pulling top against my lap.

My mind fumbles to assemble a picture of what is happening, but each piece of information seems disconnected, absurd.

...