I can clearly remember back to what my sky diving instructor told me on my first jump, "Elijah...you're going to gain more situational experience as we continue this." I was like,"Sure," not knowing what the heck he meant. That first jump rocked! Weeks later, I jumped a second time scaring every ounce of courage I had left in me. The entire time, I was wishing I was on the ground and scared for life. I thought I would never do it again! It was only then that my body told me what I was really doing. The third jump took away those nerves and I enjoyed ever minute of it. I can't proudly say that I ever finished the course to jump #10 but it's something that I still want to do later in life. Back to the story...situational awareness. During the first few months of flight training back in 2005, we were taught and embedded within our minds an idea about the ever expanding "situational awareness" that we as young aviators would develop along with the accumulation of hours. Flying in and out of clouds, new airports, different scenarios, terminology, aspects of flying and meteorology, even history began to paint the larger picture that our instructors kept on talking about. I started to slowly understand, specifically within the confines of aviation, leaving all together life as a whole. It was rather easy to tell you the truth since I was comfortably placed enabling me to focus on training. My first actual line experience in April of 2007, after seeing a myriad of moves and learning experiences at a failed cargo airline, brought together the "end picture." At least what I thought was the end picture.

Three years have gone by, rather too quickly, and things in my aviation career couldn't have been brighter (looking at the brighter side of life not from a 3.5 year first officer with upgrade a long ways away). Of course, not to mention the things back in my personal life have been rather exciting as well. First off, I'm engaged, planning a wedding that is taking me a little out of my element, contemplating life's stresses which include the money factor, housing factor, where to live for the next few years factor, work, commuting, taking care of an additional home body (hi babe!) and dealing with LIFE. The most stresses have come from these past few months because it feels like I'm not in control of things or certain aspects which I swore I use to pwn (master). My tech life is still going strong with one project on standstill and yet another about the launch. Slowly but surely, I'll find my niche, and of course everything else will fall into place?!

Yesterday after mass...I yet again realized I have gained more SITUATIONAL AWARENESS points. Count me in at a level 4 geek of life! There are certain times in life where it seems like everything is automatic and then when it slows down, one curls up into fetal position and "wishes" it keep on going. I found those times the hardest because it wasn't how I operated normally. Things were accomplished, taken care of and *poof* onto the next thing. Now, knowing that I'm making the personal choices in EVERYTHING that I do, I have to learn to CRUSH IT EVERYDAY!!!

I use to call it "the Funk" or "tele-porting" but now I know, it's just the growing inside my head that is distinguishing certain moments or pinnacles in my life. Don't let your body control your spirit, have your spirit control your life! I love it!

more on tele-porting: it's like when you think you're somewhere one moment then the next, you're somewhere else and your mind isn't keeping up with your body.