Disjoint Wisdom

We’re back on the ground again

We’re back on the ground again, thank God.
Okay, so I’ve heard about stuff like this happenings, but – as clichéd as it may seem to say it – it is supposed to happen to other people, those people on the news. Not to me.
The flight was delayed due to “technical reasons”. Okay, glad they’re making sure they send us off on a plane that’s been thoroughly checked over. Don’t mind the wait as long as we know what’s happening.
So, after waiting for an extra hour and a half, we board the plane. Find out seats. Sit down.
We wait a little while more for the plane to take off. And finally, amid prayers, and lots of positive wishes, it does.
Then, what, ten, fifteen minutes into the flight, the plane starts wobbling. It starts teetering. It starts doing things no plane it its right mind should do.
Air pockets I think to myself. Weather. But I look outside the airplane windows, and the sky is clear, not a cloud in the sky.
Then, the plane banks to the right. And I notice that the ground is a lot closer than it should be. Then the engine started making noises no engine should. Think about a sputtering car, rolling down the hill, the driver suddenly puts it into gear. Imagine the whiplash, and the engine noise. Now imagine that 7000 feet up in the sky, in a plane.
And then the sudden bursts of acceleration as the pilot (God bless his soul) put his foot to the peddle to try to get the plane back to the airport.
And the landing. A voice at the back of my head kept reminding me that 90% of airplane accidents take place on take off and landing. I kept praying for the brakes and the landing gear. Never have I prayed for breaks before.
And so we landed, amid cries of thanks and joy. The plane slowly taxied to the terminal. The engine (not engines, but singular) slowed, and came to a stop. We got out of our seats, claimed our hand baggage, and made our way back into the waiting lounge.
I now sit here, typing away at my computer, waiting for the alternative flight to take off. The only way I can replace this fear in my heart with cold rationality is to write it all down.
The next flight is in 2 hours.

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