Tonight I flew back to London from Copenhagen. We reached the coast of the UK just as the sun was setting. As we started our decent into London the pilot came on and told us that in 5-10 minutes we’d be flying over the Olympic park where the Paralympics was under way.
He told us that if he had time he’d let us know when we would see it on the right hand side. Shortly after he made that announcement he came on again and said that we were approaching Heathrow quicker than expected and that the Olympic park was just about to come up on the right. We had a clear view of East London and all the lights below and it was really stunning. People started to lean in to get a view of the stadium and I don’t know if I imagined it, perhaps I did, but the plane tilted slightly to the right and it felt like the pilot did it on purpose to give us a better view. Perhaps it was all part of what he had to do to align the plane, I don’t know, but either way we got an even better view of the Olympic park, the stadium and the other venues and could even see the camera flashes go off.
Making an effort for other people often doesn’t take more than a small comment and a little tilt in our behaviour or actions. The pilot last night didn’t have to make us aware of what we’d be passing on our way. But he did. Sitting in that cockpit he must have an amazing view of the world and have seen so many wonderful things and I love that he made the effort to share what he was about to see with us. Whether he himself really cared about the Olympics or not, there were definitely people on that British Airways flight last night who did. And thanks to the lovely pilot and his effort many of us could arrive home or at our destination and tell what a wonderful view we got of the Olympic Stadium where the Paralympic athletics events were underway. To most that only comes around once in a life time.
Tomorrow – Day 246 | Week 35 summary
Image source: www.flickr.com/photos/acb/6965397476
