At 82, my Mom just taught me a Lesson...

We live in France, my Mom lives in England- and since Dad died four years ago, we have encouraged her to travel, explore and try new things...

So far this has included a number of firsts for her travelling with us, including...

• Flying in a plane...

• Going on the Channel Tunnel...

• Riding a Motorbike...

• Visiting France, Germany, Poland, Switzerland, Italy, Luxembourg, Belgium, the Czech Republic and even  Lichtenstein...

• Regaining confidence in Driving - and how to fill up with Petrol..

• Using a mobile 'phone...

• Accessing the Internet...

When we get to the UK, every three our four months we make sure we see her, stay over and get out for dinner...

This time, as we are sat in the kitchen reading the papers over Tea and Toast, Mom asks me a strange question...

"Is it possible to learn how to fly a plane...?"

I replied that it was...

Turns out that she had spoken to some of her friends about the possibility of learning how to fly and they had all talked her out of it. She was too old, it's dangerous, expensive , noisy and cold...

She knew that if she asked me, I will encourage her to go for it...

So within a few minutes we had found Halfpenny Green Airfield, where flying lessons and trial lessons can be booked - and her initial "Trial Lesson" has been booked...

Here is the LINK to the Airfield she will be flying from..

So what was the lesson...?

Well, she made me think; I hope that when I'm 82 I'm still thinking about learning new things and doing what others say that I shouldn't. She also made me realise that;

1. We are as old as we feel - not how others treat us...

2. Why Not - go for something; if it excites you, do it...

3. Empowerment - the fact that I said "go for it" helped - sometimes people need permission to live their dreams, and we have a responsibility to give it to them...

4. Never Assume - that age, gender or background is a barrier to achieving anything.

5. Pride - she continues to make me proud. The fact that I felt compelled to share the story is testament to this, and also that I need to keep up with her to...

So, well done Mom, thanks for the lessons and I'm looking forward to seeing you fly your plane real soon...

PS - I will check the Life Policy first....