Captain Tom stood at the entrance of the hall and was surprised at what his colleagues had put in place for his retirement party. He was excited to see his favourite band at one corner of the hall and the decoration was perfect.
He walked in majestically and the guest rose to applaud him immediately after the MC announced his arrival.
Capt. Tom made eye contact with his wife and couldn't contain the happiness he felt at that moment, that day was one of the best moments in his entire career.
Immediately he arrived at the seat prepared for him, he turned around and waved at everyone before greeting his colleagues who gathered briefly to congratulate him again for a successful career.
While the MC continued with the program, the captain thought about his last 35 years as a pilot and it made him emotional. He had mixed feelings as he thought about himself not flying an aeroplane anymore and yet, he felt proud of everything he had achieved in the last 35 years in service.
"The next thing on the program is to invite our honourable Captain to the podium to share one or two things about his journey with us," The MC called Capt. Tom immediately after the band finished their performance.
Captain Tom rose from his seat and wiped his face with a handkerchief. His eyes were filled with tears and it was just a matter of them before his face became wet.
He climbed the stage gently and waved again at everyone as he walked to the pulpit. The guests were on their feet clapping as well and immediately the hall went quiet after he took the microphone from the MC, Captain Tom couldn't hold back the tears. He bowed his head and wiped his tears before saying anything into the mic he was holding.
"Today is a great day for not just me but my family as well and I appreciate everyone for coming out to celebrate my retirement with me," Capt. Tom wiped his face again and the guest applauded him louder this time.
He continued, "If anyone told me I would end up a pilot, I wouldn't have believed it. I have told a few people this story and it would be more interesting to share it again today."
Captain Tom requested a bottle of water and took some before he continued.
"Exactly 42 years ago, I left my country to chase my dreams since there was no aviation school in the country where my family lived. Before that time, a lot of people including my parents tried talking me out of becoming a pilot just for one reason which was a plane crash."
The guests burst into laughter and there was a bit of murmur among them before everywhere went quiet again.
"This was every parent's fear back then when their kids chose piloting as a profession. We travelled to another country by air and it was my first time in an aeroplane. I was excited and even imagined myself in the cockpit doing the pilot's duty, I paid attention to everything the pilot said as we took off and even mimicked the voice over and over again.
My dad asked if I was enjoying the flight and no words would have described how I felt better than the smile on my face as I looked back and forth inside the aeroplane. He swapped seats with me and I was able to enjoy the view of the earth from the sky before we swapped seats again.
Everything was great, one of the air hostesses even chatted with me and I was sure that becoming a pilot was my destiny but something happened and I almost ditched my dreams.
We were just a few minutes away from the airport according to the pilot announcement but thirty minutes passed and we were still circling in the air. The passengers on board started grumbling and the pilot made an announcement.
"Hello everyone, this is Captain James on board. We are having difficulties with the landing gear so please let's stay calm while we find a solution. Thank you,"
Everyone started panicking except me, I asked my dad and he explained that the plane couldn't land because the wheels refused to function properly. I started shivering in my seat and felt like I wouldn't see the dream come through.
I held my dad's hand and apologized for making us embark on the trip. I saw fear written all over his but he still assured me that everything would be alright. In the twinkle of an eye, the plane became a praying ground. People didn't discriminate against their religion and we all prayed together for God to help us.
The plane was in the air for another thirty minutes and the pilot made it clear that we might need to opt in for an emergency landing if the landing gear didn't work since the plane was running low on fuel.
The pilot turned the plane around for the last time and our voices were so loud that it was impossible for the heavens not to hear our prayers.
"Hello everyone, this is your pilot and I am happy to announce to you that the landing gears are now working perfectly. Please use your seat belt as we prepare to land,"
We all screamed out of excitement and did as the pilot had instructed us.
Captain Tom drank from the water again and smiled as he paid attention to the guest's reactions.
"My father asked if I still wanted to go ahead with becoming a pilot after we landed safely and it took me two days to give him a response."
On the second day at the hotel which was when the registration would close, I told my father yes and he promised to support me the best way he could.
Here I am today celebrating retirement without encountering a problem in my 35 years as a pilot, it is not by my might but today wouldn't have happened if I said no to my dreams. I could have made a different decision that day and regretted it, but the truth remains that there is no profession without its hazard and we must always be ready to face our fears.
I want to say thank you to everyone for coming, God bless you all.
The guest applauded him once again, the captain bowed before them and handed over the microphone back to the MC. They finished the program and switched to Item 7, Captain Tom was happy everything went smoothly for him.