Beyond My Control

The pilot’s voice was completely calm. But his words terrified me: “I need you all in the crash position”

- By JEANNIE HUGHES, Hurricane, West Virginia

My coworkers and I dragged our luggage across the tarmac to the small company plane that would take us back to West Virginia. I felt exactly the way my red suitcase looked—battered and worn. Our trip out to Colorado had been the first time I'd ever flown, and although the flight had gone well, my nerves were still on edge. At least the conference had been a huge success—we had secured the order for our artificial lenses used in cataract surgeries.

As I waited to board, I noticed a shiny penny lying heads-up on the first step. “Hey, look, Nathan,” I said to our company pilot. “My dad always told me nothing bad can happen if you carry a heads-up penny.”

“Well, that cinches it. We're going to have a good flight,” Nathan said.

I picked up my good luck charm and slid it into the front pocket of my jeans, then climbed onboard. Inside, the plane was even smaller than I remembered. The cabin was configured so that the four passenger seats faced one another. The cramped space felt claustrophobic, with only a thin curtain separating us from Nathan.

I took the seat across from Becky. She was one of my favorite coworkers. You couldn't stay in a bad mood around her; she was like a human antidepressant. I envied that about her.

“Good job, everybody,” my boss, Tom, said.

“Good enough to get tomorrow off?” Becky asked.

“No,” Tom said, laughing.

Like Becky, Tom was always cheerful. You knew he was coming a full minute before he appeared because you would hear him whistling. Sitting across from Tom was his boss, Randy. Randy kept a golden dove pinned to his lapel, a gift from his daughter.