Higher to reach but further to fall

It's 9pm and we're driving to a spot opposite the airport, by the sea, to watch the planes land.
The lights from each aeroplane that flies by illuminate the sea, making everyone who's watching "ooh" and "aah". The cold wind that blows in from the sea makes us wish we were decked out in more than just a t-shirt and a pair of shorts.

And then the plane is just above us, whizzing past. It ceases to be simply big chunks of metal welded together to carry people from one continent to another. Instead, it represents the future- dreams that will realised and prayers that will be answered.

I want to reach up and touch the plane above me. I feel like i can.
I raise my hand and tip-toe.
I realise i'm not only reaching for the plane. I'm also reaching for the unknown. I'm also reaching for the stars.

Soon, the plane lands at the airport and our attention is shifted to another plane that starts to fly in from a far-off place. The sea is once again illuminated and a child in front of us puts his hands to his ears to lessen the loud roar of the engines as we look up to the velvety blue skies above us to catch plane no.2.

An hour passes.

We get back into the car and drive away. I can't help feeling a little sad. Seeing aeroplanes at night does that to me.
I hear the opening bars to Cyndi Lauper's True Colors:

You with the sad eyes

Don't be discouraged

Oh, I realize

It's hard to take courage

In a world full of people

You can lose sight of it all

And the darkness, inside you

Can make you feel so small

The night seems to be cloaked in melancholy.

I look out of the window throughout the entire car ride home, letting the sadness wash over me and then settle into a corner of my heart where it will stay, only to reappear the next time we watch the planes fly by.