Fearful flying.....

As I sat here making several plane reservations for some upcoming trips, I amazed myself at how far I have come in that regard. For so long, flying was out of the question for me...

Many years before, as a child, I flew those old, noisy, prop jets all of the time and loved every moment of it. I have fond memories of sitting on the plane by the window and being amazed at seeing the 'little tiny houses' and the miniature swimming pools in the backyards of the 'little tiny houses'. And, then the plane would climb above those clouds to a sea of beautiful, blue sky..... incredible!

As I got older and had kids I thought (and worried) more about the possibility of things happening to me. I also had a rocky flight home in a storm one night returning from a family reunion and became a little shell-shocked. Unfortunately, once a fear develops, and the longer that you go without facing it.....the worse it becomes....until you are paralyzed by the very thought of getting on a plane. That was what occurred to me. It was really heartbreaking as I found myself missing out on many family events. Once I even took a 2-day train ride on my own (who else would be crazy enough to do it with me?) from Alabama to New York for a birthday celebration for Mom. It was torturous, but I was determined to get there.

To try and combat the fear, I read books written by pilots, listened to relaxation tapes.....while hearing people tell me over and over and over again that "Flying is so much safer than driving!" (aaagh)...nothing helped. I finally had to do it on my own...

When I turned 50 I said to myself, "no more!" and got on a plane again. I was uncomfortable the whole flight...but I did it and survived! Once I got that maiden voyage under my belt it seemed to get a little easier each time after that. So, now I am flying quite often....I have even received a couple of free tickets for having accrued enough frequent flyer miles.....

With little Buddha's arrival next month, I will be able to head to Minnesota and hold him in my arms....and then there is my high school 40th (!!) reunion in Florida....I was able to go to Costa Rica twice to attend a friend's sons' weddings....and my fun Las Vegas trip!.....and I have thought about heading to wine country sometime soon......etc. etc.

Wow. I have realized that it is a big world out there that I have yet to see....so, I guess that you could say that I am finally, truly taking off....and the sky is the limit...