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These are recent stories - the rest are in my latest book,"Walking Through Adversity."

Stories about European Trips (3)

Rob bryant
2006-01-09 11:34:22

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after, I was on my short flight to Zagreb then on another flight to London. On the way, we flew over Bosnia, Serbia, Croatia, Austria, the towering Alps, Germany, France, Belgium and finally the United Kingdom. Europe will fit on the Eastern Seaboard of the US, so this flight was only a few hours, yet the cultures are centuries apart. The Balkans are still in the Middle Ages technologically and culturally, while the United Kingdom is a beacon of modern sophistication. It is truly amazing that such a small country could have ruled the entire world for centuries. It was further encouragement to me that almost any dream can be reality with enough fortitude and faith. Besides, I believe God will give us the desires of our heart if we try to Honor Him.

The end of a trip and Era - After meetings, two business associates and I went sight-seeing in London. The crowds were incredible and getting heavier by the minute. We saw many people carrying flowers and they seemed to be making a pilgrimage to Buckingham Palace. It was then that we learned that the Queen Mother died just hours before. Therefore, as we passed the palaces, Westminster Abbey, the cathedrals, London Tower, the Parliament and Big Ben, it had such a special meaning. Media and dignitaries were flying in from all over the world to pay their respects. That night I watched CNN and the BBC only to see the very sights I had just visited. The media showed women crying, children quietly watching history, and men reflecting on the past and wondering about the future of the England�s Royalty. It was at the end of my trip, but spelled the end of an era for England - the passing of the most loved of the monarchy � the Queen Mother. My flight home was on British Airways, so there were more English folks on board than Americans. The atmosphere was friendly but had an air of reverence. I told many of the flight attendants how sorry I was. In response, they moved me to Business Class and pampered me for the ten hour flight. If you are respectful of others, they will be respectful of you.

Defining Moments - Just before we landed in Zurich, the white clouds below us covered everything between the aircraft and the earth below. They looked like a carpet welcoming us to Europe. However, they collided into an ice-covered wall just as carpet in a house terminates at a wall. The wall before us was the Alps, and they dwarfed everything in sight and towered over our aircraft and clouds. (http://www.aboveclouds.com/) It gave the pilot bearing and a sense of direction. To me they represented those defining moments in life that tower above the mundane days, months and years in between. They were like the large moments in life that define who we are and give us our perspectives in life. For instance, moments like when Kennedy was shot, my first kiss, graduating from high school, getting married, the birth of my children, my accident, my two world records, the Columbia disaster and 911, loom over the rest of my memories. They give me a sense of order and time relationship with the rest of my life�s memories. Mountain top moments can be good or bad (sometimes both simultaneously) but define who we are. It is only by appreciating the good moments and overcoming the difficult ones that we grow as people. I discussed this with the passenger beside me, and he saw the mountains as cold, stark, hard, and frigid obstacles. I saw them as glorious and breathtaking. We can choose to see those moments as hardships or as challenges in which we can excel. How do you see the mountains in your life? It may tell you a lot about yourself and perspective in life.

Copyright by Rob Bryant

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