One clear evening, I went to the west end of my neighborhood,
to a place where I could stand alongside the highway
to get a good view of the sunset. The exchanges to enter and exit
Interstate 74 from I-465 have been torn up for the past year to create wider lanes and more sweeping, easier to navigate turns.
Some of it has been completed and drivers have been happy
to make use of the new pavement.
Since I was a girl, I've been fascinated by the contrails left behind
by jets as they fly over the place I stand, rooted to the ground.
I especially like to see the skies in the morning and evenings, when the
contrails of many planes seem to intersect, weaving descriptions
of their journeys, just as the cars and trucks speeding past me on
the highway were creating theirs. Early in our long relationship,
Carl caught me watching the planes and pointed some of them out to me,
partly in jest, telling me where it was headed and its altitude.
I understood then that, just like the trucks on the road,
each plane had its specified lane, its place in the sky.
I understood then that, just like the trucks on the road,
each plane had its specified lane, its place in the sky.
He brought me outdated Jeppessen aeronautical charts,
which I still have, describing the routes.
I loved them then and still do. The picture below, showing
the Indianapolis area, was scanned from an old Jeppessen
United States Low Altitude En Route chart.


