Just Writing Through: The Sound of Freedom, Round Two

The United States Navy F-18 Super Hornet taking off

Another year, another Oshkosh EAA AirVenture. This week marks my husband’s 22^nd year and my 15^th year.

Canadian Snowbirds

I have a fear of flight, but I love my husband. He loves the sound of jets, the vintage biplanes, the Warbirds, the Mustangs, the aerobatic pilots, etc. I think doing stunts in an airplane is a really bad idea. It sends me into a panic every time. But he and my daughters love it.

Patriot Parachute Demo Team

In an effort to get through these annual summer vacations (if one calls tent-camping a vacation), I’ve always put the focus on the great opportunity my children have to spend a long time (24 hours a day, seven days that week) with their grandfather, uncles and cousins. This year, I took the time to take my friend Brenda’s words to heart: That is the sound of freedom.

Last year (you can read about it here), in an attempt to be brave, I tried to watch an air show, but I was too scared and had to leave. In a panic, I messaged my U.S. Air Force veteran friend who said, “Don’t be scared. That is the sound of freedom!”

So, last year, I probably used that as a way to get through the scariness of aerobatics and Air Force and Navy jet flybys.

This year, however, I thought about everything that is going on in our world, and I embraced the sound of freedom – for the first time, perhaps.

I spoke with the F-16 Demo Team flight crew. I talked with the U.S. Customs and Border Protection crew. I went to the flight line. I stood with a sleeping child while I photographed the F-18 Super Hornet, and I watched in amazement as the jet flew in and out of focus – it is stealthy, as it should be. As the sound shook my body, the plane managed ridiculous aerobatics and incredible maneuvers. For some reason, I thought of Brenda’s words, and I finally got it. That ear-piercing sound, the one that shakes the very ground on which I stand, is what allows me to live here, in the United States. This year, I stood in awe of those who protect our country.

I stayed four days this year (in a tent). I ran into an old high school classmate and his wife and children. I woke up feeling refreshed in the morning thanks to a little outdoor air and my brother-in-law’s coffee every morning – thanks, Dave. I finally understood the Warbirds, thanks to all of the military writing and research I have been doing. I held a black box from a 90s-era passenger liner crash. And, dare I say it, after 15 years, I think I finally enjoyed EAA AirVenture for what it was intended to be.

I have a crazy amount of photos and I think I will do a few posts on some of the performances and demonstrations we saw. I was horse crazy last month; hold on, because I am plane crazy this month!