[Given t(w)o] Fly (W)right (the ~11-minute “missing” compilation post for Saturday) September 20, 2025

Many blessings to everyone and especially to anyone who is given to fly with friendship, peace, freedom, understanding, and wisdom.

Stay safe! Hydrate and nourish your heart, body, and mind.

This “missing” post for Saturday, September 20^th is a compilation post featuring content that was previously posted (in a slightly different context). Some contextual (holiday-related) information, links, and formatting have been added/updated. You can request an audio recording of this practice or a previous practice via a comment below or (for a slightly faster reply) you can email myra      (at) ajoyfulpractice.com.

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“Well, some say life will beat you down
Break your heart, steal your crown
So I’ve started out for God knows where
I guess I’ll know when I get there”

— quoted from the song “Learning to Fly” by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

“We could hardly wait to get up in the morning.”

— Wilbur Wright

Odds are, you can relate to the idea of life beating you down, of having your heart broken, and of feeling disappointed that some great achievement was within your grasp in one moment and then gone in the next moment. Maybe it was just a moment. Maybe it was a series of moments. Similarly, you’ve probably had a moment — hopefully, several moments in your life — when you were so excited that you couldn’t wait to get started. So, the important question isn’t whether you understand the emotions express above. The important question is: How do experience the latter every day?

Just imagine, for a moment, waking up every morning and being excited about the day ahead. Don’t discount the fact that no day is absolutely, 100% perfect and don’t ignore the fact that sometimes we all have to deal with those master teachers and precious jewels that push our buttons. Instead, keep those imperfections and obstacles in mind and envision a day full of things and people that energize you. Actually visualize yourself moving through a day when you not only learn from your mistakes and your obstacles, you’re excited about the implementing the knowledge that comes from your experiences.

What would such a day look like for you? For that matter, what would a whole year of days like that feel like to you?

“There’s no sensation to compare with this
Suspended animation, a state of bliss”

— quoted from the song “Learning to Fly” from Pink Floyd

Now, what would be the first step in a plan to have such a day, such a year, such a life?

It’s the step I just suggested you take: Envision it.

Personally, I think any time is a good time to “dwell in possibility”. This weekend feels like a particularly auspicious time since next week is the beginning of the High Holidays and Navaratri — which means that, all over the world, there are people making plans for a new year and new beginnings with less obstacles.

So, I invite you to consider what it would be like to wake up as excited, energized, and motivated as the Wright Brothers were back in 1904. Keeping in mind, of course, that they were “given to fly” and, also, planned for their success by learning from what didn’t work, figuring out ways to overcome obstacles, and making adjustments as needed to always (re)turn to their goal.

“And he still gives his love, he just gives it away
The love he receives is the love that is saved”

— quoted from the song “Given to Fly” by Pearl Jam

Versions of the following excerpts were posted during Rosh Hashanah (2020/5781); Sukkot (2021/5782); and the High Holidays (2023/5784).

On September 20, 1904, in a cow pasture known as “Huffman Prairie”, just outside Dayton, Ohio, Orville and Wilbur Wright completed their 49^th flight. They had moved their flights from Kitty Hawk and the Kill Devil Hills of North Caroline, in part because of the windy weather and in part because cutting their (land-based) travel time gave them more opportunities to fly. For the Flyer II, they used white pine instead of spruce and added weight to strengthen the frame. They also added a more powerful engine, shifted the center of gravity forward, and adjusted the plane’s wings configuration to create more pitch stability — all of which made it easier to fly. Finally, because they had less wind than at Kitty Hawk, they devised a catapult to pull the airplane down a wooden track. The catapult dropped a 1,000-pound (544 kilograms) weight from 20 feet (6.1 meters) in order to achieve a greater speed at takeoff.

Wilbur Wright was flying the newsworthy flight, which was remarkable not only because it lasted 1 minute, 36 seconds (covering 4,080 feet), but also because it was the first time they flew in a complete circle. 360 degrees! [In other words, they returned to their original position.] Amos I. Root, a beekeeper, drove 175 miles (from Medina, Ohio) just to see the Wright Brothers fly. He published his eyewitness account of that first circle in his magazine, Gleanings in Bee Culture.

“When it turned that circle, and came near the starting-point, I was right in front of it, and I said then and I believe still, it was . . . the grandest sight of my life. Imagine a locomotive that has left its track, and is climbing right toward you – a locomotive without any wheels . . . but with white wings instead. . . Well, now, imagine that locomotive with wings that spread 20 feet each way, coming right toward you with the tremendous flap of its propellers, and you have something like what I saw.”

— quoted from an article dated a January 1, 1905, in the Gleanings in Bee Culture by Amos I. Root

Amos Root’s words painted a vivid picture of a successful moment. He put the reader right smack dab in the middle of the moment. But what of all the crashes; what about all of the missed take offs and landings? Can we picture a moment some might consider a failure? What keeps someone going in those moments — especially when they are in the process of trying doing something that has never been done? What’s the secret to that kind of tenacity and resilience?

“More and more I have come to admire resilience.
Not the simple resistance of a pillow, where foam returns over and
over to the same shape, but the sinuous
tenacity of a tree: finding the
light newly blocked on one side,
it turns in another.”

— quoted from the poem “Optimism” in Given Sugar, Given Salt by Jane Hirshfield

“Resilience” is defined as “the power or ability to return to the original form or position; to recover readily from; the ability of a strained body to recover its size and shape after; buoyancy.” It comes from a Latin phrase meaning “to spring” or “leaping back” and, as some of friends can attest, it is one of my favorite subjects. I love the beauty and the power of resiliency. I’m also a big fan of stories, especially true stories, about people who fall down and then pick themselves back up — or even of stories, especially true stories, about people who have been pushed down and somehow, almost miraculously, pick themselves back up. Those stories are inspiring because we have all been there.

We have all tried something that didn’t work out the first or second (or even the thousandth time), but we kept going. Like Thomas Edison. Or, maybe like Alfred Nobel, we’ve spent our time working on things we thought would make the world a better place… only to discover that people thought of us as the epitome of evil — and then we have to go back to the drawing board in order to leave a different legacy. We have all battled our personal obstacles and readied ourselves to put our best foot forward… only to find someone else has found their groove before us. Like Ella Fitzgerald. Or, maybe in battling our personal demons, we just fell down… and had to get back up. Then too, we have all been the underdog (like David and Michelangelo) and we have all had to figure out a way to rise from “a past rooted in pain.” Like Maya Angelou.

I could go on. But the point is we all have to find our wings.

“Be like the bird, who
Pausing in his flight
On limb too slight
Feels it give way beneath him
Yet sings
Knowing he has wings.”

 — “Be like the bird” poem by Victor Hugo

Some people believe resilience is all about attitude and perspective; others believe it is physiological (and genetic). Still others believe it is a combination of the two. Either way, there are keys to mental, emotional, energetic, and physical resilience. You could even call them secrets (although we all know them). These keys (or secrets) can be highlighted by the inspirational stories (like the ones linked above).

For example, a cursory look at the story of the Wright brothers and their quest to fly includes a little note on sleep; being in good company (which is also having a supportive community); being mindful, especially of what works and what doesn’t work; letting go of what doesn’t work; and getting good momentum. The Wright brothers’ story also pays tribute to what happens when you wake up with a little grace and a little faith.

Click on the excerpt title below & scroll down to Wilbur Orville’s quote about “[getting] up in the morning” for a reflection on what energizes you; what inspires you to get up when you fall down; and how you change your inner dialogue.

Fly (W)right (a Monday post)

“The airplane stays up because it doesn’t have the time to fall.”

— Orville Wright

I mentioned before that rest is one of the keys (or secrets) to resilience and to the success of the Wright brothers. Another key (or secret) is to have a plan and, as Orville, implied, to keep going.

So, take a moment to go deeper and make it personal. Make a plan — and invite yourself to be the best version of yourself, fully present in your own life — by turning these questions towards yourself.

• Picture yourself during a moment some might consider a failure. How do you plan to learn from that moment?
• What keeps you “up” (metaphorically speaking)? What keeps you motivated, and focused on (re)turning to your goal again and again?
• With whom do you like to collaborate (and with whom do you make a good team)?
• BONUS QUESTION #1: Who is “Root[ing]” for you? (Besides me; because “I Root” for you!)
• BONUS QUESTION #2: What would a beekeeper write about your moment of success?

“The desire to fly is an idea handed down to us by our ancestors who, in their grueling travels across trackless lands in prehistoric times, looked enviously on the birds soaring freely through.”

— Orville Wright

Saturday’s playlist is available on YouTube and Spotify. [Look for “09182021 Joe (& Rosie’s) Goal”]

If you are thinking about suicide, worried about a friend or loved one, or would like emotional support, you can dial 988 (in the US) or call 1-800-273-TALK (8255) for the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. You can also call this TALK line if you are struggling with addiction or involved in an abusive relationship. The Lifeline network is free, confidential, and available to all 24/7. YOU CAN TALK ABOUT ANYTHING.

White Flag is an app, which I have not yet researched, but which may be helpful if you need (non-professional) support.

If you are a young person in crisis, feeling suicidal, or in need of a safe and judgement-free place to talk, you can also click here to contact the TrevorLifeline (which is staffed 24/7 with trained counselors).

“‘Too much tail. All that jewelry weighs it down. Like vanity. Can’t nobody fly with all that shit. Wanna fly, you got to give up the shit that weighs you down.’”

— quoted from Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison 

### Be Like The Bird (but not like the Song of Solomon peacock) ###