For 34 years, I have watched Steve crane his neck at every single airplane that flew overhead, longing to be the pilot behind the controls, longing to be the man in the sky.
And in the years before I met him, he grew up on Air Force bases so the sound of jet engines and the smell of jet fuel are all part of his DNA. He has stood with his mom beside runways all over the world and watched his dad’s jets come screaming in from places beyond. He has watched his dad waggle the wings of his jet to say hello to his awestruck son and he has said over and over, “Someday I want to fly.”
And so yesterday, when Steve and his instructor finally took off disappeared into the horizon, I actually found myself crying. Steve was finally the man in the sky, MY man in the sky.
As Steve and his instructor were getting things ready, our very cute videographer got some footage of the process.
That cute videographer also crawled into the pilot’s seat herself. (If she ever flew, she would need to sit on a pillow to see over the controls!)
Getting ready to roll!
Does he look happy, or what?
With his instructor.
Flying over the Wright Brother’s Memorial.
Don’t you know that every pilot wants to tip both his wings and his hat to those brave brothers who made flight possible for every pilot who followed after them?
All too soon, time and gravity brought him back to earth.
Even though the birthday flight is over, Steve has his own set of wings at home: this beautiful Staggerwing that he will be taking on a maiden flight in the next day or two.
In closing, here is a photo that should make you smile. Four girls in our church knew that Steve was flying yesterday and went out to their driveway and used chalk to write, “Hi, Steve!” He didn’t see their message but the fact that they went to the effort to send their greetings in his direction made his whole day.
What about you? Do you have a lifetime dream?
Have you been able to do it, or are you still waiting?
Don’t know what his bucket list, but have a feeling he can cross this one off his list. It’s a birthday present, that to him, will be priceless.
Sharyn,
That was definitely a Bucket List-er for him!
I bet you cried, I would have too. He looked great up there.
Lesley,
The tears actually sort of surprised me! An emotional moment, for sure.
Love it! It makes us happy that Steve got to do something that made him so happy! 🙂 He looked like a natural up there!
Love, Deb and the guys
Deb,
If there ever was a natural, he is definitely it!
Awwww… “PRICELESS!!!!!” I am in tears over Steve’s happiness…. SO happy for him. I have ridden in those planes a few times, as I lived not far from a small airport in N.J. Cessnas they were. We also had a friend that owned a beautiful bright yellow PIPER CUB named “Henrietta”. (There are not very many of them in the world, I was told) I made him a leather key chain with that name on it for Christmas one year. He was a good friend and would take us up in it often. Oh, SO exciting!!! The Piper Cub was my favorite to ride…. LOVE Steve’s RED Bi-plane too….. That is SO precious about the little girls writing a message on the driveway for him. BIG Awwwwww…….. I hope he gets to read this as I wonder if he is familiar with Piper Cubs? SO HAPPY for you Steve!!!!! YAY!!
Bea,
How fun that you got to go up flying just for the fun of it! Isn’t that such a great experience?
And I love the name Henrietta for a bright yellow Piper. Perfect!
That is so great! He looks so happy! It was my dream to go to NYC and see Matilda on Broadway. I saved up money for almost a year and went in April 2015. It was such a wonderful trip!
Sarah,
Things you save up for are so much better than things that are just given to you. I bet you enjoyed every single second of that trip.
Seeing a show on Broadway is one of life’s great pleasures!
So glad Steve got to pilot the plane. Happiness for all. One dream achieved. Sarah looks great!!
Ann,
It was definitely a happy day–for him and for all of us.
Love that the school is owned by a women & the instructor is female also! Very cool! Glad Steve had such a great time!
Jodi,
I thought it was cool, too, to have a female owner and instructor. Very professional!
Such an exciting story!! So glad he got his dream of flying. And that instructor looked really young to be teaching!!
Donna,
His instructor was 25; she had been flying ten years and has been through 4 years of university with some sort of degree in a flight-related topic. Smart lady!
Wow….this made me cry. I’m so happy that your lifelong dream of flying became a reality, Steve! So, so, SO awesome! Mine is flying too, but I doubt it will ever happen. I guess I will just have to settle for being a passenger on airplanes (which I LOVE!) and go, go, go. 🙂
LeeAnne,
I love the “Go, go, go” reference. That sounds familiar for some odd reason. 🙂
Keep waiting on your dream; you never know when it will happen!