Traveling to California and back last week, I noticed something. Fewer and fewer passengers on commercial flights ever lift the shade on their windows. Their shades remain down throughout the duration of the flight. A little research on the subject reveals that although we’re supposed to have our shades lifted up into the open position during takeoff and landing for safety reasons so that flight attendants can assess potential hazards outside, there’s an ongoing debate about whether flyers ought to keep our shades down during the main part of the flight. I even ran across an in-flight video depicting two men exhibiting the contentious nature of this raging issue.1
While everyone is entitled to his or her opinion on this “up or down” question, I think there’s something going on here with this trend of closing our shades. Something I find a little sad. Granted there’s not always a lot to see from up so high. Vast farmlands. A little town below. A mountain off in the distance. A lake, a river, a big ocean. A puffy bank of clouds. Mile after mile, it goes on and on. Sure, it can get boring. Further, in-flight entertainment has improved, and whether we’re watching a television built into the seat ahead of us or accessing wi-fi through our phones to watch a show, many prefer this to gazing out the window. Others want to put their time to good use—catching up on their reading or knocking out some work that needs to get done. Still others feel compelled to catch up on their sleep. But I think the main reason the shades are all down is because we have become so accustomed to flying, we no longer marvel over the idea that we’re speeding along at 600 miles per hour some 30,000 feet in the air. Been there. Done that. Don’t need to see it. Don’t even need to think about it.
And yet, here’s the thing about flying: We are, in fact, speeding along at 600 miles per hour 30,000 feet in the air, soaring incredibly aloft through the clouds like mythic Greek gods. Every person born from the beginning of time up until not very long ago would consider such an experience to be at least one of the pinnacles of their lives. But now many of us don’t even think to slide the window shade up to take a look out. Ascending high into the atmosphere above the curvature of our planet traveling at enormous speeds has become no big deal. Slipping the surly bonds of earth. The whole miracle of human flight. The elevation. The speed. The power of the vehicle. The remarkable nature of it all. Ho-hum. We just don’t feel compelled to witness it. We have other things to do. We don’t even think about such things.
Think about such things…
Paul uses this little phrase—think about such things—in verse 8 of chapter 4 of his letter to the Philippians. “Finally, brothers and sisters,” he writes, “whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”
Paul is suggesting we ought to exert some control over our consciousness and not miss but instead recognize and magnetize ourselves to all that’s truly elevating in this world. Consider what’s true and think about it, he says. Identify what’s noble and reflect on it, he says. Put your finger on what’s right and what’s pure and tenaciously latch on to such things with both mind and heart. Linger, he’s telling us, over what’s lovely in our lives. He’s urging us to lay a strong hand upon the run and drift of our thoughts and bring our minds to reflect on what’s close to God, what’s heavenly in nature, and what is good. Think on these things, he says. Let them occupy you.
It’s easy to keep our heads down in our work and on our screens. We’re tired and sometimes need a rest. We grow so accustomed to the blessings we have that we don’t even think about them a whole lot. There’s a lot around to amuse us, to entertain and busy our already bustling minds. It’s gotten all too easy to miss when there’s something truly elevating happening. Something perhaps within our reach. Every once in a while, lift the shade.
God—If anything is excellent or praiseworthy, may I think about such things. Amen.
— Greg Funderburk
1 https://www.travelandleisure.com/airlines-airports/passenger-shaming-men-fight-over-airplane-window-shade
