Come Take My Hand

When I was in fourth grade, my dad took up a hobby. He got his pilot's license, and he and a friend bought a plane together. My father most of the time was a very unhappy person, but this new venture was something that made him smile.

I loved going up with him in that little airplane. We always had his friend with us, because my dad would not fly alone with his kids in the plane. I remember how carefully they checked everything out before we went up, and how diligent they seemed to be with all the controls.

My mother hated his hobby. She was a woman extremely dedicated to being miserable, and she disliked it when others were not as miserable as she was. I don't know all her issues, but she was very vocal at how much she objected to him doing it.

She refused to ever fly with him. I don't believe my mother was ever on an airplane her entire life, although I can't say for sure. She said those little planes are dangerous, and a person could die. And she wasn't completely wrong about that, because there is definitely a risk.

I didn't think it was dangerous at all, and even relished the times he would zip that little plane around a little, just to amuse me. I was in my early 30's before I ever flew on a commercial aircraft, but I remember thinking that you really didn't even know you were flying, except for the take off and landing.

One of the best times we flew was when he and his friend flew me from Pennsylvania to Virginia so I could spend a week at my sister's home there. I was amazed that we got there so quickly, because it was a very long and tedious drive in the car. I totally remember thinking that was the way to go. I still think so.

When I was a travel agent, I learned to deal with clients who were afraid to fly, or had some trepidation, or simply were a little nervous. Fear is an emotion, so you really can't reason with it. But statistically speaking, traveling in a car or in a train is much riskier.

Flying. How I felt was this. My dad was the person I trusted most in the world, and he would never put me at risk, so I just enjoyed it. What is there to fear when you know the pilot?

Toward the end of my marriage, I attended a jazz festival with my husband at the time. His favorite music is smooth jazz/R &B. Being the good sport that I am, I went with him and I enjoyed seeing him have a good time.

Everyone was all abuzz about Jeffrey Osborne. He must be a really important artist in this genre, I remember thinking. My ex-husband didn't know who he was. I wasn't interested enough to Google him on my phone, and then as we were sitting there, the announcer introduced him. Jeffrey Osborne. The crowd went wild, and I thought, oh this will be interesting.

And then he opened his mouth and sang, "Just smile for me and let the day begin..." And I was all, oh my gosh! So that is who Jeffrey Osborne is. He wrote the lyrics and made famous one of the best songs ever, and here it is.

Susan

"On the Wings of Love" written by Jeffrey Osborne and Peter Schless