Russia
Alexy
Aljona
Arina
Artyom
Dasha M.
Dasha S.
Dima
Dima Zh.
Irina
Ksusha
Kristina
Margarita
Misha
Nastya
Nikita
Olga
Ruslan
Sasha
Zhenya
Zhenya B
When we are born, we do not care or need travel. As a child, we are quite content to stay where we were born. To laugh with friends, eat at the dinner table, and fall asleep in our own little bed. But, to get places near and far, we need something more than just a car. Cars are fast, but there is always something wrong with them. In the end, there will always be traffic jams, and the only way to defeat it is to take your time in the sky. Yes, flying, it is a dreadful experience now, but younger.. well…
As I was born, I did not care about flight, all I could do was laugh and look at all the little people and the little cars. It would be a fun time, and I imagine that I always wondered why my mother looked so worried, flying was the safest thing in the world, or so I imagined.
I did not know of plane crashes until later in life. I had always heard of them and joked about it, but it was never a reality that I had to face. That was, until 9-11-01. When the twin-towers were struck down, the realization came that planes are dangerous, and will always be. I was in 2nd grade; in a panic to learn we were going to Hawaii that summer.
Yes, Hawaii is every kid’s dream, but to fly down there? It sounded insane, surely my parents knew what could happen? What if the flight controls locked and we crashed! Or, what if the terrorists boarded our very plane to attack another building and kill more innocents. I was in a panic, and it was taking effect.
And so, as we boarded that plane and my heart stopped on the dime, I looked out the window, giving my parents a half-smile. As the plane began to take off, my ears popped and all the sound in the world escaped from me. The silence was enjoyable for a team being, then I heard the roar of the engine. I looked out the window seeing all the little people turn to ants and my heart raced. Surely this would be the end?
And it wasn’t, we survived with a smooth landing and a sigh of relief. Flying had never affected me so much before! As I raced to find the answer, my mind began to glitch out as I began enjoying myself. It was a fun time, and I had to admit I was having a blast. Then the dreaded fly back came and I braced myself for Oblivion.
And yes, it did not come yet again. The ratio of death from a plane was so low, but surely someone would do. And who was to say this someone would not be me? As I asked my parents if we were going to die in a plane crash, they simply said that they do not know. Imagine my surprise, being a young child. Asking your parents if you are going to die, you’d think they would say No. But no, my parents told the truth and said that they just didn’t know.
The years ticked on and we all took a break from flying. But it still hung over us all the time, and whenever we took a vacation break, I thought it would be a flying trip to our doom. We managed to find a vacation home in Florida and it sounded like a blast to play.
Our entire family would drive down there, hang out, and swim in the pool. We would go to Disney World and Universal Studios, and it would be a real good time. We would drive back and the process would repeat its self again and again. And yet, the fear of flying still stood.
When my brother and sister finally headed off to college, it was just me and my parents. A more profitable trip was flying, so again, we began to fly down there or fun. All the time I was on the edge of my seat in preparation for the end. It did not come, but I still felt the fear it would and could instill.
And then, the remedy came, keeping my mind off of the situation. Indeed, I felt better with my mind on the wander rather than realizing the danger that I was in. If it was sleeping or eating or reading, I felt all the safer, and in the end, all the better. Yes perhaps, reading was the most effective. To read would turn a three-hour flight into a short two-minute fly, or so it would seem.
Yes, the fear to fly still lives within me. However, to be a human, and to be a real man, I must conquer this fear. And by doing so, I live a better and longer life, and, live a life without, a fear to fly.
USA
Darian
Duncan
Emily
Evan F
Evan T
Jakob
Jason
Kelly
Milo
Nathan
Philip
Richard
Ryan
Teddy
Tom D
Tom I