Flying

I don't travel like I used to.  I suppose in some ways everyone can make that claim. It is not the experience it was when I was a young man.  Even with all the change though, there is one thing I still appreciate when I fly.  It provides a for a time of solitary reflection.  Even though I am in a very small space, surrounded by travelers from all over, I am largely left alone to pursue my  thoughts. 

I have written many things on airplanes over the years, letters mostly but with an occasional reflection on some fleeting notion that has caught my attention.  The reflections and many of the letters never survive.  When working with paper, the editing process is too cumbersome.  The first drafts are never acceptable and the rewrites are too hard to create and manage.  Throwing away the incomplete, convoluted draft always seemed easier than trying to turn it into something worth sharing. With the advent of the tablet computer I feel that maybe I can capture some of my reflections in a more malleable way. 

Today, I spent a lot of time editing a blog post at 30,000 feet above the earth traveling at hundreds of miles in an hour.  My seatmates were neither curious to learn about me nor interested in offering their stories.  I just pulled out my tablet and began writing.  This device doesn't require the space of a laptop so even in "cattle class", I'm able to use the device despite the person in front of me reclining their seat into my space.

The tablet computer records things like my tablets of paper in the older days but it also allows me the luxury of editing, rereading and editing again until the words fit together like puzzle pieces revealing a picture.  It is my favorite travel tool and it is what I use to maintain some sanity and hopefully some perspective while I travel.