What Goes Up...

"You can float in the plane," said Ron.

"What do you mean?" Larry asked him.

I was sitting on the back of the small airplane that Ron was flying.

After high school, we had all gone our separate ways. Years later we met again, and as it turned out, Ron had become a pilot, of all things, and he had access to a small airplane, on which we were then flying.

I felt the airplane go up and point its nose straight up, and then my heart seemed to give out. The pit of my stomach sank as the plane dropped all of a sudden like lead, and I felt myself coming off the seat and floating towards the middle of the cabin.

“Holy shit!” Larry and I said at the same time. It was a brief, but what a rush!

“Oh man that’s nuts,” I said.

“Take this quarter," said Ron reaching into his pocket, "and put it on the tip of your finger. Hold it like that. Now watch.”

Larry put the coin on the tip of his index finger.

Again, Ron swooped up in an arc and pointed the plane’s nose straight up, then like a drop on a leaf, he let it fall.

The coin floated in the air, and so did my soul. It was far out, but soon I began to feel queasy. I sat back feeling wretched.

“Want me to do it again?”

“No man, that’s good.” We both told him.

I could barely say a word and just sat back with a groan, hoping we’d get down to the ground soon. When we did so, I was glad to put both feet firmly upon it.

I took the video in this post last summer during the firework festivities. People began gathering early in the day to find a good spot from where to view the pyrotechnics. I found a nice grassy knoll and recorded the video. While reviewing it today, I saw that the pilot did the same maneuver as my friend, Ron, had done that day. It looked like he was having fun. But I still get that queasy feeling in my stomach when I see it.