AUTHOR: Sheri Lynch TITLE: From way up high... DATE: 3/28/2006 11:55:00 AM ----- BODY:

How amazing is the sky? You don't think about it much, down here on the ground all caught up in your daily drama. Sure, you glance up often enough, checking for rain or maybe to notice how a certain cluster of clouds looks exactly like a sheepdog leaping a fence. A beautiful sunset might get your attention, assuming you're standing outside looking at it, instead of standing inside your kitchen trying to figure out something to cook for dinner that doesn't involve yet another boring boneless chicken breast. The sky -- can you even fathom it? We took off last Friday morning in a cold, drizzling rain. The clouds were the sodden, thick sort -- the kind that you know aren't going to suddenly break for a little sunlight. There was a gusty wind jostling the plane as we bumped our way to cruising altitude. Nothing but gray could be seen through the windows and then, in an instant, we punched through that soupy mess into clear blue sky. You forget, when the weather is nasty, that above the storm there is always a serenely indifferent blue sky. That sounds like something you'd find printed on a tea towel at The Cracker Barrel gift shop, doesn't it?

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