Man-made-machine

Living next to the airport really does put your mind to work. You may ask how. Well, I always did have a fascination for aircrafts and the sky. Flying them and watching them fly are two very different things.
I have had my share of flying these jumbos ever since Prep School. Butterflies in my tummy during the gradual incline and the growing deafness in my ear as pressure balanced itself encouraged a debate in my mind as to whether my destination was really the one printed on my Airline ticket. Well, this argument grew strong during one of my most frightening experiences in the air.
Ok, this was the route , Dubai-Bombay-Bangkok-Singapore-Bangkok-Bombay-Dubai.
Yup! A whole lot of flying. I was pretty excited about the long string of cabin time I'd be having. After we got to Bombay, we were all set for our early morning cruise to the Far East Asia. Little did I know that my 'cruise' was going to be anything but pleasurable. 3am dawned at the CS Airport,Bombay(now known as Mumbai) rather quickly. While passing through immigration counters ,check-ins and security checks, fear and anxiety surfaced only because I was busy playing the movie Bangkok Hilton in my mind. Holding my one bag-pack very close to my side, I glanced around nervously at various passengers rushing past me to their respective Gates.
When it was finally the time for us to board, I moved out of the waiting lounge and walked down the long corridor suprisingly the end of which was the front door to the aircraft.
We were greeted with friendly smiles and wishes of having a good flight by the cabin crew. I settled comfortably in my window seat and buckled up. While the rest of the passengers boarded, I began my investigation of the various electronic devices restricted to my seating area. The small television attached to the back rest of the seat in front of me was my favourite. Without wasting anytime, I began flipping through the channels. So far it was just the map of our destination, the route we were to take and of course the flight details.
With a roar, the giant creature plunged headfirst into the emptiness in front of it. Soon I felt my self resting comfortably against my seat as we climbed very slowly and steadily into the big blue.
Thirty minutes in the air was a heavenly cruise. Outside my oval shaped window, puffs of white wizzed by as the aircraft glided effortlessly 39,000 feet above sea level.
All was well with the world, the sky outside my window, with my miniature small-eats in front of me and of course the re-run of F.R.I.E.N.D.S playing on my television screen. I laughed to myself as I watched and enjoyed the gentle comedy using our individual headsets. I reached out for my fizzy when all of a sudden the creature took a wild dip sending my stomach straight to my throat. The next thing I knew, seat belt lights were flashing, the captain on the intercom rattled a couple of "calm-down" phrases and more of the "don't worries". And oh yes, something about hitting an air pocket. I was glad with the service and the delicious tastes in my mouth until it suddenly turned sour and lumpy! I told myself I was way too old to be reaching out for the big brown bag prominently jutting out of the seat pocket right in front of me, with the words "FOR MOTION SICKNESS" resolutely printed on it.
I closed my eyes shut, barfing at the very thought of using it rather than at the air crisis I was having. When I was younger, I was always told that every point in life is like a phase that has to pass. Good or bad. Right now, the only thought I would entertain was the duration of this phase. Whether I would experience any more 'phases' in my life, good or bad.
The creature kept up the vacillating movements while my stomach followed suit. The captain's voice cracked over the PA System. To my dismay, our route was sketched all the way through the Bay of Bengal, a place well-known for it's cyclones and thunderstorms. The aircraft managed to intercept one of those eminent storms sending all its passengers into a warp of frenzy (Yours truly included).
Feeling nothing like an aqua-park gala ride nor anything close to a roller-coaster, I grabbed on to my seat with absolutely no clue as to what our destination would finally be. Looking at all the fear stricken faces around me, I felt more comfortable letting out my emotions and began to cry. Then, as if held together by some external force, the aircraft calmed itself and finally managed to take on it's initial course. That was the end of it! That was the phase!! I was so relieved. It was all over.
Without another warning, the creature climbed high into the sky, the whole body moving vertically sending my stomach to my feet! Was this another phase? Was it not over still?
What did I do wrong? Did I eat something I wasn't supposed to, that the creature was now moving vertically and horizontally trying as hard as it could to heave it out of me? Not able to take the torture any further, I reached out for the bag in front of me and did the only thing I knew how to bring on some sense of relief.
Twenty-five minutes of pure terror seemed long and lasting. All with only one question to ponder upon, "What next?".
Well, nothing drastic, else I wouldn't be writing this one ;)
Calming itself once again, the creature rested and cruised peacefully, as if recovering from a very painful and trying convulsion. Sighs and sounds of infants crying filled the pressurized cabin. Determined to wipe out the sheer terror from my face, I attempted to continue with my on-flight activities by picking up the headset that lay in the space below my seat. I switched to my favourite channel trying to put the life-enduring episode behind me.
As I gaze into the blue sky from my view-of-the-airport apartment balcony and at the creature once again attempting to clamber onto yet another journey, I can only think about this man's invention and it's challenges against the forces of nature.