once upon a time...

there were two friends who had a passion for building airplanes. all they ever dreamed about was to get their planes done and up in the sky and fly, hoping that their flights would never, ever end.

one of them wasn't particularly good at making the finer parts of his plane. however, with a bit of effort, he refined his technique as time went by after much trial and error.

and eventually, he finished his plane.

the other friend couldn't build so fast. while his technique was slightly better, he still had troubles with certain parts of the plane, especially with the engine. so he kept on trying as well, until eventually, he too finished his plane.

he then agreed with the first friend on a date to take off so that the two of them could realise their precious dream together.

the day came. the two friends got into the cockpits of their planes and started the engines. the planes coughed and sputtered to life. however, strange noises were emitting from the planes' engines, sounds that just weren't normal.

nonetheless, the pair still decided to take off anyway. after all, their dream of flight was nearing reality!

the planes taxied down their runways and before you knew it, they were in the air. the two friends were ecstatic! they could finally fly!

however, the engines started to sputter and cough again, and almost at the same time, both engines died mid-flight. without their engines, the planes began to plummet from the heavens like falling stars, crashing into the earth.

miraculously, the two friends survived and, after a month in hospital, made full recoveries.

the first friend, however, became disillusioned. he thought he had finally achieved his dream, but in the end, the brief moment of glory turned into calamity. he was shattered. and he swore never again to take to the skies or even think about making a plane again.

while his friend turned his back on their dream, the second friend picked a totally different route. he had tasted his dream, and though it left him in pain when it crashed, he wanted to experience the feeling again.

he wanted to fly once more.

so, he did some research and invested some money into books, especially those about plane engines. as he learnt more each day, he went back to his workshop, applying what knowledge he had gathered and eventually, started work on a new plane.

day by day, his knowledge grew, and so did the plane. the fuselage, the ailerons, the tail fin, the landing gear and the wings slowly took shape.

the path to flight was not without its difficulties along the way. once, his workshop caught fire and after putting out the flames, he discovered that the plane was damaged.

yet the second friend persisted. he rebuilt new parts from scratch and disposed of the damaged ones, even taking the time and care to add in improvements and refinements along the way.

finally, he was left with the engine. while he had not been skilled enough in the past, the second friend got his head down to work, referring even more closely to the books he had bought and attending to the engine with far greater care and skill.

eventually, he finished rebuilding his plane and looked at his calendar and picked a date to fly.

when the day came, the second friend was filled with excitement. this time however, it was also tinged with a touch of trepidation. he had crashed once, and all he could do was hope it would never happen again.

he suited up and trooped into the cockpit, where he started the engine. once more, the engine coughed and sputtered to life. this time, however, the engine purred once it had sprung to life.

the second friend closed his eyes and said a quick prayer, before taking his plane down the runway.

unlike the first time, the plane took to the air and stayed there. for the initial part of the flight, the second friend was anxious and he clung to the sound of the purring engine, hoping and praying that he wouldn't have to experience the dreaded sound of deathly silence once more.

but it was not to be.

the plane flew and flew and flew. and my, did it fly.

the second friend snapped out of his fear, and looked out the plexiglass windows.

and what a sight he saw.

he saw the trees of the forests and the rolling hills. he saw the cities and the people in their cars scuttling across the roads like marching ants. he saw the beautiful blue of the lakes, the streams and the rivers, which led to the vast green-blue oceans that stretched far beyond his horizon.

he didn't want to come down, but eventually, he had to. as the fuel gauge started to reach out and point to empty, the second friend reluctantly came back down and landed on the tarmac.

but as he wheeled his plane into its hangar, he told himself that this was only the beginning and a taste of things to come.

and he went to sleep that night, with a grin on his face, as his dreams were filled with the sights he had seen in the day...