The Five for Fighting song “Superman” has chorus that goes; “I can’t stand to fly. I’m not that naive. Men weren’t meant to ride with clouds between their knees.” I really relate to this song and I think about this nearly every time I get into an airplane or helicopter. I really don’t like to fly. Actually, I hate to fly. Helicopter flights aren’t that bad, only when they make a sharp turn do I get nervous. But, I still would rather walk.
Several years ago, I flew over the cities in Iraq. As I did, I thought about what Superman sees. In that helicopter, we weren’t so high that you could not see anything, like in airplanes. I could see the actual roads and individual street lamps. So as we flew, I once imagined Superman in his “listening post”, going over city after city. It must be amazing to fly without rotor blades or propellers…or even wings–just to float in the air.
I wonder what he thinks about or does he just wait. I’ve never seen Superman reading a book up in the sky, or listening to his iPhone, that would negate the purpose of a listening post, of course. Does he get bored, or is he just as amazed as I am when I see the big world from the sky?
What would it feel like to able to fly?
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Photo from DCComics.com
This post is a rewrite of a post from August 2006, title “I Can’t Stand to Fly“.