Last month I arrived at JFK Airport smiling and feeling especially mellow. Now, keep in mind that I had just spent five-and-a-half hours awake but for the most part in a confined position, which ordinarily I would consider a form of torture. So as I proceeded to make my way into Manhattan, I reflected on why I now felt so laid back, and then I recalled the lyrics to an old Cole Porter song: “I get no kick in a plane / Flying too high with some guy in the sky is my idea of nothing to do.” And that’s precisely what the time in the plane had provided me with — an excuse for me to do essentially nothing. Or at least, nothing work-related. Instead, I was able to relax and watch a movie and a TV show without guilt – that is, without being plagued by the nagging thought that I ought to be spending that time doing something productive.
Now don’t get me wrong — I had Wi-Fi on the flight, and did manage to devote a few minutes to writing a blog and a few e-mails, but nothing that involved any sense of obligation. It was just the ability to totally chill, which I realized I give myself very little opportunity to do. But it was for the most part what I did for those five-and-a-half hours. Wow, what a joy! Now I know what it is I like best about flying – it gives me the one chance I get to decompress, to relax, drink some wine, eat some nuts and go with the flow, because the plane is the one place I am not in control of my life. In a weird way, it’s as if the Type A work ethic and self-discipline that I was taught as a child and have driven me since go into temporary remission when I’m up in the air.
Having suddenly become aware of this truth about myself, I have resolved to try starting the day after I finish writing this somewhat introspective blog as if I am a passenger in my own life, rather than trying to control all my activities. Maybe the meetings I’m scheduled to attend will prove less stressful. And perhaps I’ll even find the journey of living itself that much more enjoyable.