Need for speed

In aviation terms near miss refer to nearly missed accidents. But we can relate it to nearly missed flights as the context demands.

My daughter and son-in-law were returning to Bengaluru after spending a week-long vacation in Kochi. The flight was scheduled to depart at 2210 hrs and as per the norms of the carrier, passengers were required to report strictly by 2125 hrs lest they fail to board and obviously miss the flight.

We got a driver at 1930 hrs and were about to leave when my wife called and asked us to wait for her as she was travelling to Kochi by train expected to reach Ernakulam Town station by 2015 hrs. We were rather apprehensive as it allowed  just above an hour for us to make it to the airport in time considering the usual traffic jam.  But hesitantly we decided to take a chance. The train finally arrived at 2020 hrs and by the time we started it was already 2030 giving us just 55 minutes to cover 33+ kms veering through the nasty traffic. We were all tensed up with very little hope of reaching the destination on time.

Time was ticking off and the vehicle was moving at snail's pace and it took nearly 30 minutes just to cover the first 10 kms.  We had no other option but to tell the driver to ignore the speed limit, come what may. It really worked.  But we are not sure whether there were speed cameras on the highway. That only added to the tension. Anyhow the driver used full throttle wherever he could and amidst our silent prayers the vehicle finally touched the departure gate on the dot.

We were under tremendous pressure and finally heaved a sigh of relief when my son-in-law called to say that they have checked in.

We have been in similar situations in the past. But we continue taking chances valuing sentiment. Is it really worth to put yourself at risk by over speeding just to say goodbye in person to near and dear ones before embarking on a trip when cell phones can radiate your voice or flash your messages in a jiffy. Please ask yourself.