Years ago she and her husband were in a horrible accident. A young man had hit the end of their car so hard that it went airborne and upon its decent, the cars collided again. Somewhere during this time, Syd's seat was loosened from its tracks. She was left strapped in the seat unable to stop it from smacking into the interior walls of the car. She was free flying inside her own vehicle.
As I hear her speak about her accident, I pay attention to my own driving, making sure to go slowly and check all my mirrors. With all her injuries: hip, knee, back, shoulder, etc, I could only imagine the therapy needed to recover from a traumatic experience such as that.Not only months of physical therapy, but mental therapy as well. I would be broken after something like that. Her strength amazes me and inspires me.
After the accident, Syd was no longer able to be a pilot, the constant shuffling of bags and other physical demands of the job were just too much for her to handle, so she had to retire.
When she speeks to me about her days as a pilot, the things she had to go through, how there were few female pilots and how the good ol' boys saw them as a joke, there is this look in her eyes. I cannot tell if it is pain or maybe longing. I couldn't even imagine being on top of the world, literally, then being permanently grounded and struggling to regain motor functions.
Yet Syd is happy to tell her tales, and even wants to write a book about her experience. I am one of the lucky few that has gotten to read some of her works and was asked to edit them as I see fit. So there are 3 stories in my hands that I must mark with my favorite red pen tonight!
This woman never ceases to amaze me, I learn something new about her or from her everyday. I'm truly enjoying my time with her and cannot wait to see what tomorrow brings!
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