Today was a kind day for me in that it only threw 7 hours of work at me. That is do-able and sure was a whole lot easier than yesterday’s grueling 10 hours.
I’ve been thinking how fragile life is. The Ethiopian airline Boeing 737 Max 8 that went down on Sunday morning pulled the rug out of millions of travellers across the world. Air travel is so safe. The number of commercial airline crashes has dropped over the years, so much so that there was a full calendar year (2017) that there was not a single fatality due to a commercial airline crash (See that story here.) There were other smaller aircraft and private plane crashes in which people were killed, but 2017 was the safest for commercial airlines. Airlines across the world are pulling their fleet of Boeing 737 Max 8 planes from the air but there are still lots of airlines that are still flying them. To be honest, I don’t think I’d rush to fly in one.
Then there is the story of the Greek man who was devastated to miss his flight. His name is Antonis Mavropoulos and he posted this on Facebook: (this is the Facebook translation from Greek, so expect some anomalies).
“March 10, 2019-my lucky day
Running to catch flight et 302 Addis Ababa – Nairobi, which crashed 6 minutes after taking off, I had my nerves because there was no one to help me go fast. I lost it for two minutes, when I arrived, the boarding was closed and I watched the last passengers in tunnel go in – I screamed to put me in but they didn’t allow it. In fact, I missed the flight because I didn’t give a suitcase (otherwise they would have expected me for 10-15 minutes or more, because finding a suitcase loaded needs at least 40 minutes). Also, as I learned later, I lost her because I came out first and very quickly from the plane and the connection ambassador who came to receive me didn’t find me
Airport people, kind, promoted me to the next flight that would leave at 11:20, they apologized for the inconvenience and transferred me to a nice lounge for the-waiting.
On 10:50, as we joined the next flight, two security officers informed me that for security reasons that a senior officer will explain to me, they will not allow my boarding. In my intense protests they left no margin of discussion and led me to their superior, to the airport police department.
He told me gently not to protest and say thank you to God, because I am the only passenger who did not enter the flight et 302 which is missing. And that this was why they can’t let me go, until I determine who I am, because I didn’t get on the flight and everything. At First I thought he was lying, but his style left no margin of doubt.
I felt the ground lost under my feet, but I came back in 1-2 seconds because I thought something else would happen, some communication problem maybe. People were kind, they asked what they had to ask, and let me wait.
They made me sit in a living room and they told me to wait there until they warn me.
I was looking on the internet to find elements for the flight, friends from Nairobi informed me that 30 minutes after the expected time had not landed and there was no information about her luck and suddenly all the wifi of the airport.
Fortunately there are sms – from close friend I learned that the flight crashed almost just after take off and that the issue was going out in the Greek media.
Then I realized that I must immediately contact my own people and tell them that I was not on it and that for two small random circumstances I lost the flight – the moment I made that thought i collapsed because then exactly I realized how lucky I stood.
This text I wrote to manage my shock. I’m posting it because I want to tell everyone that the invisible and, nēmatídia of fortune, the out-of-plan circumstances knit the web in which our life is taken. It’s millions of small threads we almost never feel – but one to break is enough to feed the whole web instantly.
Really, it’s the first time I’m so glad I wrote a post and I’m grateful to live and that I have so many friends that made me feel their love – kisses to all and a warm thank you for your touching support.
Maybe not too old to rock n roll – but certainly too young to die…
Sunday 10/3/2019, 13:00 Addis Ababa, Ethiopia”
Here is his boarding pass
Life is fragile. But this life is not all there is. Our life – the entire extent of it, is like a grain of sand on the world’s largest desert. We cannot fathom the shortness of our time here on earth compared to the everlasting life for which we are destined.
Life is fragile. When Dr. Monty Brink left his home early on Sunday morning to ride the Argus, he had no idea that about 34 hours later, this would appear on Facebook:
Life as we know it will one day end for every one of us. The only way for me to not be afraid of that thought is to have a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. Forty years ago this coming July, I asked Jesus to take over my life and He did. While I am keen to see old age, I’m happy in the knowledge that when God calls me to move from my earthly home to my heavenly address, I will be ready.
Titus 3:5
He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of His mercy.
Amen!
These are the days.
Keep the smile going.
God bless you.
In His Grip,
Helga xx 🙂
Gym:
- 30km cycle – 78 minutes
- Stepper – 5 minutes
- Circuit machines & stretches – 10 minutes
Braces:
Day 119 – so that’s 17 weeks.