When I was young, my neighbor would take
me to the airport to see passengers board a propeller plane and then fly into the clouds.
The experience of seeing an aircraft take off was so thrilling that no one would ever
think of leaving the observation deck before it was airborne.
Today, millions of
Americans travel by air each year. The observers of yesteryear have become plane loads of
unhappy passengers. Air travel has become so routine that much of its excitement is gone.
It is my conviction, however, that some of the former sense of excitement can still be
found, if you can reframe the adversities of air travel, and see them as adventures.
According to the dictionary, an
adventure is defined as "an unusual and stirring experience." Air travel
frequently fits this definition. It gives you unusual experiences which stir up your
emotions (like being stranded at some out-of-the-way airport), and you can never quite be
certain what might happen next. Airlines throw in a free real-life adventure included in
the cost of your ticket. And to spice it up they also add frequent flyer points so that
you can fly that more often on the same airline that served terrible food, lost your
baggage, and kept you in Wichita overnight when you wanted to be in St. Louis.
You can see your
trials and tribulations of travel as aggravation or, as in the movies or through a child's
eyes, you can see them as an adventure. The choice is yours. Let the adventure begin!
When I was young, my neighbor would take
me to the airport to see passengers board a propeller plane and then fly into the clouds.
The experience of seeing an aircraft take off was so thrilling that no one would ever
think of leaving the observation deck before it was airborne. 
According to the dictionary, an
adventure is defined as "an unusual and stirring experience." Air travel
frequently fits this definition. It gives you unusual experiences which stir up your
emotions (like being stranded at some out-of-the-way airport), and you can never quite be
certain what might happen next. Airlines throw in a free real-life adventure included in
the cost of your ticket. And to spice it up they also add frequent flyer points so that
you can fly that more often on the same airline that served terrible food, lost your
baggage, and kept you in Wichita overnight when you wanted to be in St. Louis.
