Overcome By Fear - Yoga on an Airplane

I have a love-hate relationship with flying. I loved watching planes take off and land long before I ever rode in one. The whole concept of flying has always fascinated me. My parents used to take me and my sister to Tampa Airport soon after it was built to watch planes. She and I loved riding the 'People Movers' betweenthe terminal and the satellite terminals. That was when you didn't have to be a ticketed passenger to get right up to the gates. My dad also used to take us to Brookpark Road near the airport in Cleveland to sit at the end of the runway to watch the planes take off and land. I don't remember if we went because we liked it or he did, but I still like to watch. I'm on a flight right now from Atlantic City to Fort Lauderdale to go on a cruise. One of the stops is Sint Maarten, where Maho beach sits at the end of the runway and the jets land right over the beach. The landing gear is so close to the bathers that they could reach up and touch them. Do you think I'm going there?

Watch my video on Yoga On an Airplane:

I wish I could have been able to film it on an actual airplane. They announced today that you can't form a line at the bathroom. Let's see what I get away with.

I've been doing my yoga here in my seat. It's Spirit Air. There's not a lot of room at all at the seats. Perhaps I should do partner poses with the young woman next to me or with the guy across the aisle. I can easily touch them both. Wait, I am touching both of them. Think we could get into a serious twist together?

My love hate relationship involves loving everything about flying, taking off, banking,and  rising up and down in the seat with the gravity play. It also involves my mind playing all of the worst case scenarios like all the possible ways the plane could lose power, glide into the water, flip over in a gust orexplode. They could close the bathrooms. My neighbor could be snapping gum. Or the guy in front of me farting. You get the idea. So during takeoff I did the slow breathing. It kept my heart from racing, and I actually enjoyed it for what I enjoy about it rather than being overtaken by my fears. And I put on my sound-canceling headphones and played William Billings. My neighbors are all chewing gum. Preemptive strike one and two. Now let me see if I can vinyasa my way back to the bathroom.