This is a borrowed story. But it happened to the man who told me so I am including it here. Also because it is one of my favourite stories.

Jorge was a conscientious, studious boy who did well at school and went on to study engineering and get a good job in a multinational firm. He was quiet and thoughtful. Dutifully he visited his relatives as is required in Latin America. Including the uncle who had the exciting job of being a pilot of a small taxi plane.

Unfortunately over the years this uncle, who lived on his own, had started to diverge a little from what we call sanity. On this particular day just the two of them were in the plane and he started to taxi down the runway. Faster and faster he went until the plane took off and zoomed dramatically up into the sky. Jorge could tell this wasn’t the normal flight path and glanced nervously at his uncle, who, he couldn’t help but observe, was gripping the controls with a fixed and manic gleam in his eye.

Enquiring carefully about their plans for the day he got the unexpected and emphatic reply “Vamos a la luna!!”, we are going to the moon. And indeed, the uncle seemed hell bent on this objective, heading full throttle up through the atmosphere.

As I said,Jorge was a thoughtful fellow and he managed not to panic in the face of this deadly scenario. In a stroke of genius he asked his uncle if he had remembered to bring sandwiches because they wouldn’t be able to get any on the moon. The subsequent descent back to earth was also terrifying, but at least they were now heading in a better direction. Once on the ground, Jorge got out to make the sandwiches and ran for his life.

I love the glorious objective of flying to the moon, even if it was somewhat doomed. It would be a magnificent way to go. Not just yet, not for me but still, you’ve got to love the sheer energy and focus of the man. On the days when I find myself being overly cautious with my intentions, with my heart, with my fears, I think of that man and it gives me the space to live a little larger.