Favorite Aviation Reminiscense

Taking off at 4:30 am on a 4 hour flight with my teenage daughter on
our way to see her cousin's graduation ceremony. My girl had just
broken up with a boy friend and was really depressed. She begged to
go on this long trip, as she was really close to her cousin. They
didn't get to see each other very often, as they attended college far
apart. The weather was iffy. I decided to try the flight anyway as
the ceiling and visibility were great at the departure airport and for
the first 200 miles of the route. We could check the weather as we
progressed and turn back if things didn't get better. Just as we
reached cruising altitude I saw a shooting star screaming through the
crystal clear pitch black air. I asked my kid if she'd seen it...
trying to cheer her up, but she hadn't. She began looking, though.
Then there was another streak, intensely bright and colored. Then
more and more of them. A full fledged meteor shower had broken out
and we had the best seat in the house. Here we were hanging in mid
air with the most amazing performance going on around us. It was if
the almighty had magnified and colored these flying jewels every color
of the rainbow. Big ones, little ones, and some that seemed to
stretch nearly from one horizon to the other. My daughter's whole
outlook on life was changed in an instant. We watched the show in
total silence with eyes and mouths wide open. When the show was over,
she came out of her funk and later struck up a REAL conversation.
Something too rare to behold between a teenage girl and her daddy.
Her eyes sparkled like the meteors we had just observed. Although
we'd always been close, I believe a stronger bond was formed between
us because we had witnessed something so rare. An event that very,
very few if any other people had experienced in the same manner. Then
to top things off, calls to FSS had ground fog at our destination, but
as we got closer daylight arrived and the fogbank was spotted from 50
miles away. Another call to FSS and they told us weather was clearing
at nearby airports. The fog lifted and dissipated as we watched,
while still clinging to lakes and ponds. It was surreal. We landed
in CAVU conditions and made it to graduation on time. Oh yeah, on the
way home we stopped at a grass strip on the edge of a lake with a good
restaurant within walking distance. I'll never forget the trip.
Neither will she.

"EDR" wrote in message
...

1980's...
Watching the string of landing lights of arriving aircraft east of
Oshkosh stretching out over Lake Michigan.

(Amusingly, followed by watching the arrivals try to find a parking
spot in the dark with out flag-people.)