Reflections from a 747 pilot at sunset

More beautiful words from 747 pilot Christiaan van Heijst as he crosses the sky above us as we sleep. "Flying high over planet Earth in my 747, trespassing the cloudy frontier of light and the quietude of night I look down from my cockpit and can barely distinguish the clouds from the depths of the night below. One thing that does catch my attention tonight is the moon up there. While I gaze at her crescent shape I wonder how many people look at her at the same time across the world. Seeing the same ancient and mysterious floating rock up there. Thoughts drifting to outer space, wondering about our role in the grand scheme of the universe or simply taking the thing for granted as yet another thing that happens to be in the sky. READ: Second 777X takes to the skies. Some see a face in it. My grandfather was sure he saw the Dutch/German Prince Bernard in there (including his white carnation) and even got agitated when we didn't see it. I guess it doesn't run in the family. When I look at it, I see the stories of my Apollo heroes and their pioneering adventures fueling my imagination. The next celestial phase for human evolution beyond our cradle, our stepping stone into the solar system and beyond. An inviting lantern and companion for long-term continuity of consciousness perhaps. We'll have countless of challenges to face, multitudes of horrible lessons to be learnt no doubt. Sacrifices we hardly dare to envision and dread. But in the long run, the rewards are far beyond our present imagination and wildest dreams, not to mention our mutual survival. Time to go, for those who know there is more than what we take for granted every day. Stay safe out there. Though whenever you can, go out and look at the moon coming weeks. Our beautiful and tantalizing celestial neighbour will grow more noticeable every day again. Visible to all of us, weather allowing. A promise of hope in desperate times. Christiaan is one of the world’s leading aviation photographers and more of his work and more close encounter (s) from his 747 can be found here.