STOP AND SMELL THE ROSES
Halfway between the earth and sky one seems to be closer to God.
There is a peace of mind and heart, a satisfaction
that walls cannot give.
Flying is a symbol of freedom from limitations"
Barnstormer Margery Brown - 1920
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| SKYWARD Why Flyers Fly by Russel Munson |
It's soundless in the cockpit of a jetliner. You sense the wind and the wisps of clouds rushing by. You see the ground 24,000 feet below and watch weather patterns, sunsets and moon rises off in the distance. But you can't hear a thing. I love the silence.
Time also seems to freeze as you chase the sun westward and prolong dusk miles above the earth's surface. Beryl Markham, in her lovely 1942 memoirs, West with the Night, describes the quiet, immensely private thrill of piloting a plane by flying westward, on the tails of night itself. A solo traveler and navigator of the skies, she belonged to the first crop of female aviators, whose daring exploration of the skies shaped modern day air travel during gallant flights in glorious solitude.
What I later discovered by flying myself and learning about my aviation predecessors that solo flights - capsules of solitude - are opportunities for self-fulfillment and capturing each moment with clarity. It was an unspoken common thread female pilots seemed to share.
Flying was their sanctuary - their time alone - precious moments for themselves. It was intensely personal time: time to cast aside the daily routine of an earthbound existence in, what was then, a narrow society. It was precious slivers of time, whittled from their lives so that they could be who they wanted to be. It was their moment to live their dreams at a time when society was telling them that their dreams didn't belong to them.
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| Amy Johnson Photo credit - Women Aloft by Time-Life Books |
I think everyone can identify in someway to Amy's thoughts.
My fascination with flying has also been personal. There is no organized or even verbalized prayer in the cockpit, but there is a sense of reverie. There is something awesome about taking flight, something mysterious,not begin earthbound - alone with one's thoughts - clear
uncluttered thoughts, with room to appreciate the spellbinding beauty of the atmosphere and uninterrupted freedom to be yourself.
Earhart reflected that, "You haven't seen a tree until you've seen its shadow from the sky." And Anne Morrow Lindbergh, the shy retiring wife of the famous Charles, was so retiring and so lyrical a writer about what she called "the fundamental magic of flying" and "peering through the ruffled surface of life to a calmness down below" that people forgot she was also a capable pilot, navigator and radio operator.
The airplanes I flew were a miraculous balance of metal and nature not unlike the everyday balance of one's life. Unlike today, flying was risky business when my favorite aviatrix flew. Our lives are privileged in comparison, more secure, but perhaps not as fulfilling.
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| From left to right, Louise Thaden,Bobbi Trout, Patty Willis, Marvel Crosson,
Blanche Noyes, Vera Walker, Amelia Earhart, Marjorie Crawford,
Ruth Elder and Florence "Pancho" Barnes with their trophies from the 1929 Women's Air Derby.
Photo credit - Women Aloft by Time-Life Books
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Old black and white photographs capture my pioneer buddies - they all seem tall, reserved and glamorous. Usually with eyes slightly hidden in the shade of the sun, they seem starry-eyed yet pragmatic standing with their airplanes. They have seen countless horizons. They were adventuresome and at the same time had respect for the enormous beauty of the atmosphere and natural forces, as well as the mechanics and science that lifted them into the sky in the first place.
I can easily see why there becomes a cultural love and respect from and for other aviators - both male and female - that bonds us all to the skies.
And perhaps the most challenging part of life is simply taking time to enjoy the view.
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