Cleared for Take Off !

It's great to have friends in high places and today was a beautiful example of that. It's not exactly what you're thinking though...

We arrived at Craig Air Field shortly after 1:00 p.m. After conducting a preflight inspection, which I found extremely interesting to watch,( I had a hundred and one questions but knew to contain myself) we boarded a Cessna 172...117 (I think...may need a correction to that) and prepped for take off !


(( this picture was stolen without permission from it's owner :-) ))





I had been looking forward to this moment all week. I prayed daily that we would have good weather and mother nature sure delivered! I also prayed that I didn't get queasy up there...this would NOT have been fun for either one of us. Just to be on the safe side, I skipped dinner the night before and had 2 Dramamine for breakfast.

It had been quite some time since I had been in a small plane...probably 12, maybe 13 years. It wasn't the flying that I was concerned with but rather the possibility that motion sickness might kick in at anytime. Just to be safe, I packed a baggie...O.K...I packed 2 in hopes that they would never be used. If I didn't need them, he would never know I had them and If I did need them...he would be thankful I had them. It was a win win situation :-) Fortunately, I never needed them.

I was fine and dandy during my passenger briefing until I heard the words..."In case we have an emergency..." STOP!! HOLD ON!!!...REWIND....!!! WHAT???? EMERGENCY??? He showed me a checklist and explained that in the event of an emergency he was depending on me to read from this little bitty card that was a total blur at the moment. I could barely see it now...what the hell was it going to look like should I need it for real?? For a brief moment, I felt like I was radiating from within. I tried not to let this come through my facial expression but I do believe I failed miserably. Seeing as an in-flight emergency could be a possibility, I paid close attention and squeezed in another prayer :-) The truth be told, on any given day I would trust him with my life...and today wasn't any different. I decided not to let the thought of an actual emergency tarnish the trip.

We taxied down the runway as I checked the latch on my door about 5 times to be sure it was fully engaged !! All of a sudden it felt like we caught a cloud and it lifted us up...up...up...

I am always nervous during take off but for some reason today, I wasn't. I was calm, settled and awaiting the view at 3500 ft. I was not disappointed. We flew out over the coast and headed towards St. Augustine. It was simply beautiful. We then headed towards downtown. The long, boring roads that you travel everyday are so much more interesting from up above. They curve and loop and have such character as they seem to dance through the city.

After a great flight, we landed safely back at Craig Airport and went about our day.


So instead, maybe I should say that it's great to have a very special friend that has access to high places and was so generous and willing to share this fantastic experience with me.

What a great day !!

Stumped !

I recently had someone very close to me ask, respectfully..."How do you prepare people for Elle?" I stood there....stumped. That was a very good question that I simply didn't have an answer to. My reply was..."I'll get back to you." All I know is that there is usually someone there to be the bridge. Beyond that, I never gave it any thought.

I have been pondering it a lot since. The truth is I really have not brought anyone new into our circle since Elle's diagnosis. Has that been intentional, quite possible. Come to think of it, The Addy's are the only people that we got to know after Elle's diagnosis. On any given day, you can find a picture of Elle on the picture board in their kitchen. It's filled with photos of those that they love most...enough said :-)

The Addy's are the parents of one of my absolute best girl friends. I had personally been to their home before on my own. During this time, we spoke about Elle in detail. They initiated the conversation and I am always willing to answer whatever questions people have about Elle. Mind you that is providing these questions come from a good place.

When I look back to that initial meeting with Mason and Donna, I was so nervous. We had been invited for Easter Dinner. Now I personally, can hold my own anywhere. But things were different this time...it was about Elle and acceptance and fitting in and appearing normal and not disrupting anything or anyone and I could go on and on and on. Would she cry, would she scream, would she eat calmly or was this going to be one of those days when her inner-toddler came out. What if she dropped food on the floor or banged her cup to loudly? What if she jumped out of control in the jumper while everyone was watching football? If you are reading this you're probably thinking ...That's what toddlers do...they drop food, they cry, they get feisty. True, but when an a-typical child does these things no one really thinks about it beyond that. But when a disabled child does it...their disabilities are magnified!!! And THAT is what I worry about. That is the root of the nervous feeling. As much as I accept my daughter and I say that I really don't worry about what others think, I do in a way. I don't worry per say. I just want her to be accepted and treated as any other child. I want people that meet her to talk to her and acknowledge her as they would any other child. I don't want her to be fussed over because someone feels obligated or they feel sorry for her. I sometimes think people simply don't know what to do when they meet a child with disabilities. For goodness sake, she's a little human being. She can see, she can hear, she knows when someone is paying attention to her. Now, her response to these interactions my not be typical and maybe that's what throws people. Who knows.

Fortunately, I can reflect on my life before Elle and I can understand how sometimes people may feel uncomfortable with things that are not their norm. I know not everyone is going to be able to have this reaction to Elle or any other disabled child for that matter. I understand that and I respect it. I guess it's just funny how your perspective immediately changes when you change the shoes you walk in.

Getting back on track... I guess that's the answer to the question. Preparing people to meet Elle works best when the conversation about Elle comes up before they meet her. When I can be around them first and feel comfortable with them...when I have someone that is close to me to be that bridge. It allows me the ability to break the ice, if you will. I had known Shannon for years and had visited with her parents a few times before they actually met Elle. So it didn't feel quite so overwhelming when we arrived for Easter dinner with Elle. Mason and Donna's response to Elle also had a lot to do with everyone being comfortable. And for that, i will always be grateful.