A first date in the skies
“Come fly with me!” was a first date invitation.
We met in golf class at junior college where we were lined up alphabetically, the fate of L next to M. He lived on a golf course, but I was taking the class for the easy P.E. credits. He liked my smile, I liked his swing. But instead of taking up golf, we used this class as a reason to take long walks along the greens, being serenaded by chirping crickets, balmy evening breezes fanning our young romance.
For that first date we flew in a Cessna 172, up above the crazy traffic and on to the coast, landing at a small airport to sip a Coke in their diner. I had that carefree feeling, humming a tune while dodging among popcorn clouds and peering down at rivers of tiny cars flowing through urban sprawl stretching as far as the eye can see.
On final approach to land at our destination, I felt the plane tipping side to side rapidly! He was “wagging” the plane wings, to get the attention of the control tower, a universal distress signal. Then he rapped on the radio in frustration! The noisy engine and his stormy countenance add to my fears and I knew intuitively he was no longer enjoying himself but concentrating on protecting me.
When we smoothly landed on terra firma, I nearly kissed the ground as I stumbled out. It took me a bit to get my stomach interested in that Coke. On our flight home, as we flew out over a glassy blue ocean, he let me try my hand at guiding the plane, took me up for tummy-tumbling stalls, and instructed me on how to be a proper co-pilot to keep us safe.
Many dates later, after we had chosen to attend and graduated from the same university, he proposed to me on Valentine’s Day. We were wed in the fall, our favorite time of the year, at a chapel of his family tradition.
It has been 42 years since then and my journey with this man has been a wild one! As with that first flight, he is still protective and he still takes me on wonderful adventures. Having babies had grounded us (in more ways than one) and so we no longer dodge weather in the skies. Our adventures have shape-shifted to new venues.
We are now “empty nesters” but our adult children are nearby both physically and emotionally. I remember how it was before the all-consuming lifestyle of parenting. The unpredictable weather of life has not always been easy to navigate, but the beautiful days always stand out as a beacon to us when we lose focus on what is important.
“Come fly with me!” has been a most interesting and engaging date … the journey of a lifetime!