Shankar had a plan. He received word that his mother was sick and figured that the fastest way to get to her bedside was to go by air. Unfortunately, Shankar could not read, and understood little about the new airport that had been built next to his village. From what he could see as he worked the wheat fields next to the Hyderabad airport, these flying things moved a lot faster than traffic on the other roads. So yesterday Shankar stuffed some food, cash and his only other shirt into a plastic bag, climbed the fence and hiked over to the nearest road to flag a ride. Never mind that the nearest road was a runway and the first bus was an Airbus.
The police arrested Shankar on the runway as he tried to flag down a plane. He was upset that the planes would not stop even though he acknowledged that he did not have a ticket and his mother's village does not have an airport.
It’s laughable that someone with so little understanding should think he can just walk out and hop a plane. It is really ignorant to think that you could get to your destination without a ticket, without checking in, and without a walk down that boarding ramp. The book of Proverbs says, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.” (16:25). Obviously Proverbs is not talking about plane travel. It’s talking about pleasing God. It is equally incredible to think one can do this without following the way.
HA! I laughed out loud when i read this. You have to admire Shankar's audacity for trying, though, and that's what sticks out to me. I always want to be the guy who at least climbs the fence and tries... not the guy working in the wheat field thinking that it's probably the safest to just walk because cars are scary and the big noisy birds are scarier. Thanks for sharing, Shihan! -sj
Posted by: Samurai Jack | September 12, 2008 at 10:39 AM