Oh! We have slipped the surly bonds of Earth
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings …
We cruised among ribbons of rain,
Tingling ‘twixt dusty earth and pure high sky.
We marveled at silent sculpted fantasies of form.
We moved among proud families of stone.
We slipped past forgotten corners where ancient feet tread.
We joined eagles over vast colored canyons where timeless rivers meet.
These and countless more miracles we witnessed in wonder,
on our Islander Adventure.
We were here, with love all around.
3431 Top ‘O World
On top of One World Trade Center, looking down and back at the footprint pool and out to the Brooklyn Bridge where we once rode friends’ bikes. Again reviewing pix from our Islander Adventure seemingly now from a different enchanted life, memories are refreshed of that April 24th flight of this year.
3447 Old Tops
The older tops of the world (Chrysler at the left, and of course Empire State) stand frozen in time as other towers grow up around and beyond them. Far down in this forest a few old churches, once on top, now grasp for air and light. Just above the new top, we quietly surveyed this magnificent memory in the making. We were here.
3620 Montreal
A few days later we took in Mount Royal beside Montreal, where we once hiked up for a lower angle on the city we’d also explored on foot and bike.
3950 Quebec City
Soon after, we similarly wandered Quebec City. One of our favorite activities there was roaming the old town on the river, especially the part to the left of the funicular at the bottom-right of the pic.
I sighed deeply just now, remembering these and so many other wonderful times we’ve shared. Not just on this adventure, but on so many others.
I got to pondering old poems on the larger subject of this post while reviewing the last pix from our recent SF trip, starting with this little boat.
2763 Apex Icon
Anchored off Sausalito carrying several “dinghies” more valuable than our car, and probably costing more to operate for a day than our plane does for a year, this boat represents one archetype of upward mobility. But the view opens out to the quirky little city itself, where art mingles with wealth.
2764 Sausalito
But more alive for me is the upward mobility brought by Tripp, as we rise above all this and beyond time itself in a way.
2777 Clear Lake
We were taking a quick afternoon trip to visit loved ones in Clear Lake before going home to Santa Barbara. Something impossible without an affordable trusty steed like Tripp. On the way home after our visit, the Bay shone in the hazy evening light illuminating another mobility. Upward from the past, when I wandered this area on the ground and savored the rare commercial flights that gave me a hasty glimpse of this scene through a milky plastic portal.
2798 SF Bay Evening
Looking back at an old barn among the golden hills of my youth brought a keen awareness of this upward arc.
2837 Sunset Farm
Suddenly a few light squalls appeared alongside our route, and our steed easily climbed to find a way among them while treating us to a circular rainbow that we could only capture this slice of with the camera.
2841 Angel Eye
This view of heaven and earth is reserved for those who have chosen to devote at least the modest sum we’ve saved, to buy upward mobility of this kind. In a few minutes we were back in clear air and passing the familiar gently rolling hills of my California youth.
Golden light
Nectar, pouring through,
These hills.
2854 These Hills
My soul
Dipping
The warm burgundy
Wash of evening clouds
Mingling with
These hills.
2847 Clouds Mingling
Mile 37
Let me notice
What quickens the heart.
Caress of a hand,
Shape of a hillock,
Sound of a breeze.
What catches the eye.
Lone tree on a ridge,
Flicker of a fleeting movement,
Impulse of a photograph in time.
2859 Nightfall to Dream
After our night in San Francisco the next few days we flew back to San Jose, then Oakland, San Jose, and Clear Lake before flying home. Here are a few of my fav pix from those flights.
2498 Salt Colors
The area around San Carlos has some spectacular salt flats. I guess the red may be marine life of some sort. I remember the Dumbarton Bridge from my years in the Bay Area, and though it never did get much respect I like the graceful arc it makes across the flats.
2495 Dumbarton
The day we visited a family war hero in San Leandro, the view past Oakland Airport to San Francisco looked even more striking than this pic conveys. I wish the camera could see what the eye does, and evoke what our hearts felt.
2533 Oakland To SF
The day we flew to Clear Lake for a too short visit, passing over SF we got a great view of Washington Square where we’d enjoyed beer and conversation across the street.
2652 Washington Square
I don’t think we’ve ever flown anywhere near this bridge without taking at least a few pix. I like how the towers flirt with the fog in this one.
2687 Golden Gate
I’ve always been fascinated by the Fine Arts Center, but have never visited it nor do I recall having noticed it from the air before. Now it’s added to the landmarks I’ll enjoy from the air, and is on our ToDo list for a future visit.
2693 Fine Arts
The name of this post reminds me of the last flight my Dad took, from a SoCal hospital to one in the Bay Area. We think of him and other departed loved ones on many of our flights to that region, and this flight was no exception.
2114 Breath of Life
Our wonder weekend began with this breath of life as we departed SBA. This is another reason for today’s title, because every flight brings us a deep breath of sweet Life as this magnificent world unfolds beneath our wings.
2157 Forgotten Airships
After a string of such miracles we landed briefly at San Jose to sign for a rental car we’d use the next day and then flew past these old airship hangars at Moffatt Field. I visited them during my brief career in Silicon Valley servicing electrostatic copiers, and gained access to the NASA wind tunnel on that base. Now the base is home to some Google planes and a wide spectrum of cutting edge techie toys. But flying over them was in part a flight back over my past lives in the Valley.
2257 Heart of SF
A few breaths later this slice of our panorama over San Francisco included a squiggle of boat wake beyond the buildings, and the eerily empty Bay Bridge ramp. Then we caught a glimpse of the ground we’d soon be haunting with young friends.
2271 Coit Climb
Bottom-right is the church at Washington Square where these friends share an apartment and kindly gave us a place to sleep in the heart of SF. That night we again climbed the streets to Coit Tower where we once went with our precious daughter. Then we passed the Presidio cemetery where we once visited Anne’s great grandfather together.
2299 Forgotten Hero
This forgotten hero came up with the idea that extinguished the great SF fire that followed the horrific earthquake there at the turn of the last century. Now he rests quietly, remembered by the dwindling circle that includes us.
2313 Left My Heart
We “stepped back” by flying out beyond the bridge for a look past it to The City as it shone in the distance like a treasured memory. A part of our hearts still dwells in this city by the sea, where we wandered in our youth and savored the Summer Of Love.
58_740 Dreamers
Now new dreamers dwell there, and we had the great good fortune to be hosted by a few. Related to our precious Molly by soul selection, this troupe of angels introduced us to their enchanted experience of all that now is San Francisco. So began the first day of our Life Flight.
John & Anne Wiley 
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