Ah, yes. Flying... such a wonderful experience, isn't it? Sitting at your terminal, sipping Starbucks coffee, gazing out at the runway as the planes take flight. Then finally you board. You then find yourself soaring 35,000 feet in the air, gliding amongst the clouds and embracing the views of tiny houses, microscopic cars and bright street lights, illuminating like the veins of the earth.. Flying is quite an interesting concept, actually. Something that my worrisome, little mind refuses to accept.
For me, flying is absolute mayhem. I lose sleep, don't eat, make myself sick, Google search "flight statistics"(which never ease my mind a bit), and then take Dramamine in hopes that the drowsiness keeps me from becoming motion sick and assists in aiding my sleep from runway to runway(which also never happens).
"We will now being boarding" and "Ready for take off" are probably my two least favorite phrases while in the process of traveling somewhere. And don't even get me started when the loud speaker screams "Flight bla-bla-bla has been delayed due to severe weather conditions".
So, as you could probably guess, this is the part where I lose it.
As soon as a hint of uncertainty pops into my mind, I begin to ask questions. According to my family and boyfriend, I never seem to shut up.
"Is that normal?" I ask.
"Yeah, that would be the landing gear".
"Oh, okay. So you've heard that before? That doesn't mean the plane is malfunctioning, right? I mean even if it did, they would never let us take off, right? And that sound, yes, that one, is THAT normal? Oh, and they put enough gas in the tank before we take off, right? What about if there's an emergency landing? We'd probably be OK, right? Yeah, the exit is right there. All I'd have to do is just duck and cover. Wait, no... That for a fire. Are there ever fires on planes?! What do they do if there's a fire?!"
By this point, my family thinks I have completely and utterly lost my mind. And now that I reflect, I would believe that too. The funny thing is, this questioning seems to subside once I'm in the air. After takeoff, I finally accept the fact that I have zero control over the situation. I'm stuck. Oh well.
It wasn't until my most recent flight that I built up the courage to move a seat closer to the window with my boyfriend, where he showed me an amazing view of the "Southwest" wing and all the beauty that fell below it. The wing's red, yellow and blue tones seems to complement the puffy clouds that aircraft was flying over. It resembled cotton candy. An ocean of never-ending, absolutely stunning cotton candy. At this time, the grip on the arm rest eased up, my shoulder relaxed, and I leaned closer to the tiny window to peer down onto earth. Excitement. Pride. I was on a plane, soaring above land and the clouds with the people I loved. And the view I was seeing was spectacular.
At that moment, I started to realize what flying does for the soul. As terrifying as flying may be, it is liberating. If it wasn't for planes, I would have never traveled to Europe and sang in the Sistine Chapel. I would have missed out on seeing my family in Seattle for Christmas and watching their faces light up with joy when we were all finally together after several years apart. Without flying, I would have never flown to Los Angeles to see my boyfriend after he returned from Connecticut and felt the feeling of complete happiness while holding someone you love so dearly, close again.
So, to those of you who are just like me, no matter how fearful you are, get on that plane and GO. See the world, expand your horizons, make new friends and deepen the relationships you already have. The experiences, memories and happiness you gain through travel are worth all the sweaty palms, tears and turbulence. Like Shia LaBeouf says, JUST... DO IT.
