[originally posted: 2/28/2017]
Ever been randomly reminded of something that happened a long time ago, something you hadn’t though about in a great while, but the more you think about it, the more you remember the role it played in the bigger picture of what your life was at the time?
This triggering circumstance is not very odd in itself–I received a promotional letter to reactivate a membership I used to have to AOPA, the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association. As a kid, I would say that I wanted to live in a C-130 and float around in the sky like a house boat to the sea…
But what I really starting thinking about was how, in college, I had applied to the Navy OTC under the three billets of Pilot (which, let’s face it, my vision was never going to make that a reality), Navigator, and Supply Officer. I didn’t end up getting selected and pretty much dropped that path then and there without much of a second thought, but I had spent a lot of time up in Rochester with the recruiter and also with officers at ROTC events at a local Army base.
Fuck, what would my life be like if that had worked out? Could have been better, maybe a whole lot worse, heh, maybe I would’ve taken a longer journey just to end up in the same place…who knows. I’m not going to concern myself with that, but I do appreciate those moments that take you back to your old self, that make you smile because despite all the stress and challenges and unknowns in life, you remember, even if only for that moment, who you were and the reassurance that you still know who you are.