I always prefer a window seat when I’m on a plane unless most of the flying will be done in the dark or, lately, if it’s a very long flight where it makes sense to be able to get up and walk once in awhile. Yesterday, flying east on a gloriously sunny day I was happy to see what looked like a jigsaw puzzle across Wisconsin from 35,000 feet up! I was excited to see the shore of what I assumed was Lake Michigan come into view. Without having seen the flight plan or any idea of what time it was I acknowledge that I could have been mistaken; Lakes Superior and Erie are also in that general direction. We were flying to Baltimore and all I know is that the earth slowly disappeared as lovely white clouds began to gather over a huge body of water and for the duration of the trip I was floating in what became a dense wall of moisture that blotted out any awareness of time or location. The sense of suspension without any markers was all-encompassing and I entered it totally, as if I were part of the vast silence of the clouds, just being without any doing at all. It was a different experience from any other I recall in traversing cloudy skies. There was no sense that the ground would re-enter my field of vision until about the last two minutes before landing. I was totally “out of control” of everything and, blessedly, not wishing to leave that state by reading or making lists for the days following my return.
I found it interesting to read God’s question to Job this morning in light of yesterday’s experience. Have you ever in your lifetime, God asks, commanded the morning and shown the dawn its place? (JB 38:1) I can’t explain exactly why I was so taken by that “time out of time” except to say that I was not at all distressed at being out of control of events or environment for as long as it lasted. Perhaps it will teach me to remember that God really is always the “pilot” and has the flight plan of every day in hand. All I have to do is enjoy the ride!
The Sophia Center for Spirituality 