As a nervous flier, I have a series of rituals I follow as part of every flight. While objectively I can acknowledge that it would appear that I have little control over the outcome of a flight, I continue to practice my rituals at every take off and landing, creating a small sense that I'm doing my part to ensure a safe flight.
After a perfectly manageable flight to SFO last week, and a nice smooth landing, I was again able to breathe easy on the tarmac, but was left wondering why collectively we no longer acknowledge the wonderful feat that has just occurred.
Maybe I'm imagining it or just becoming really old as I begin a sentence with "When I was a kid...", but I do recall people clapping when pilots had great smooth landings. Personally, I feel like standing on my seat and cheering "Halleluyah!" every time the wheels touch down safely, but I've refrained from it thus far.
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