Taking Flight

There’s that moment before takeoff when the plane starts moving faster, faster than a car, when you think, even if you never, ever pray, “Dear God, keep us safe.”

I used to think it was because of 9/11 and the people on those flights who thought they were safe and really weren’t, but no, they must have had their own worries when the plane started to take off. That maybe today was the day, and it was, but not in the way anyone might have imagined.

I think of that every time I fly, no matter how big the plane, how short the flight. How everyone thinks, as they should, that travel is a scary and beautiful privilege that we both take for granted and also overthink. And how maybe if we spent one moment each day in wonder of how fast we’re moving, how close we are to take off, that would result in one prayer, every day.

Dear God, keep us safe.

It might not keep us safer. But maybe happier and more free.