Flying on Instruments

Today's trip home to Rochester from Dallas was quite hair-raising.  The first leg was absolutely fine, and I remember none of it, having slept from before take-off until landing in Cleveland.  From there, even getting on the next plane to Rochester (after having been re-routed due to Hurricane Sandy) seemed to go smoothly ... until being grounded due to a storm-wind system in Erie, PA.  Not being sure if I was going to make it home on time, when, or how, is not an experience I enjoy replicating often.

Yet I have to remember, for every "gift" that the traveler gets in terms of an unexpected upgrade, easy connections, or terrific service, there are flip-sides, too.  Take for example the train trip I had getting from Salzburg to Budapest.  The train got struck by lightning, and what was supposed to be a comfortable, non-stop trip turned out to be a miserable, hot, slow, smelly journey which got me to Budapest much later (and with a very dangerous and expensive taxi ride then to an awful hotel) than I originally had hoped.

Such is traveling.  The only other option, of course, is to "stay home."   The trip today, however, made homecoming wonderful (and gave me a very welcome from my kitty).

The pilots today, on the Erie-Rochester leg, are to be applauded.  And they were.  The flight customers all clapped when we landed safely.  Since my seat was on the aisle of a relatively empty plane (no surprise), I could watch in detail how the landing gear worked.  My baby brother is now in his senior year of college, and he has spoken with great passion about what it took to get his pilot's license.  He talked about learning to "fly on instruments," which is what you have to do to read the gauges carefully, and not rely on "instinct" or "weather" in order to navigate and land a plane safely.

Artists have to "fly on instruments" from time to time as well.  We have to trust our training, our practicing, and our ability to read detailed instructions in order to "land safely."

Not only that, but today also reminded me of the power of prayer.  To calm, to protect, and to deliver us home safely.  Many different religions speak about the protection of God for travelers.  Elisabeth Elliot writes that, "It is God to whom and with whom we travel, and while He is at the end of our journey, He is also at every stopping place."

Even Erie, PA.