Airplane Rides

I went on my first airplane trip when I was about 6 or 7.
My parents, my brother and I flew to Detroit to pick up a new car from the factory there and then we traveled around and drove it home.
My dad believed that this was the best way to buy a car.
The money he saved on shipping the car and paying a car dealer paid for the vacation.
But this blog is about airplanes, not cars.

I was very impressed with my first plane ride.
I can remember gazing out of the window of the airplane at all the tiny roads and tiny houses and tiny cars and tiny people. It reminded me of the Game of Life game board.
The stewardesses (which they were called at the time) treated me nice and I thought I was pretty special.
The only thing I didn't like was the cigarette smoke floating through the air. Back then you could smoke in certain rows toward the back of the plane but the smoke circulated everywhere.

Today I took another plane ride.
One of many I have taken since that first one.

I am still impressed with the view from the window.
The tiny roads and houses and cars.
The thing that intrigues me the most now though are all the designs in the fields and the ground - circles and lines and diamonds and squares. It's amazing to me how much definition there is in dirt and rocks and weeds.

The flight attendants are still nice, but I don't know that I feel all that special anymore. I guess I was special today because I got the whole row to myself which was definitely nice. I probably should wish for seatmates so I could have opportunities to share the gospel, but I enjoyed my peaceful, quiet trip.

One of the most intelligent people I know refuses to fly.
I haven't discussed his reasons with him but every time I get on an airplane I wonder if he knows something that I don't,
but should.
I have a hard time understanding how planes can fly.
I have had it all explained to me, the lift and the drag and the this and the that, and it still doesn't make sense to me that a big, huge airplane can be held up in the sky by only air.
It's something I don't really like to dwell on.
As long as I don't think about it too hard I'm o.k.
It appears to work pretty well, over and over again so I just have faith that it will work when I am a passenger as well.
Today that plan worked out well.
It is nice to be in Salt Lake City in an hour and a half
as opposed to 13 hours.

Today I am thankful for

Airplanes.
Money to pay for a plane ticket.
A flexible schedule that allows me to leave home whenever I need to or want to.