Tragedy as defined by the American Heritage Dictionary] is a dramatic, disastrous and catastrophic event. The response to tragedy however is not as easily defined as the word itself. One may take many angles as to how one should respond to an inhumane event. The stress and/or outcome of such an event can cause depression, suicide, rage or regrettably more tragedy.

To respond to tragedy as to improve one's quality of life can be very difficult, but it is necessary. Ironically, it is easy to react in an aggressive manner because it feels good, but to respond with love is emotionally challenging. This book is written through love. It is not done through timidity, but rather with the intent to lift the hopeless and encourage those who open their heart to the content of its pages. This is a true story illustrating hard work, triumph, adversity, dedication, and commitment, to include a sincere foundation of character through uncertainty.

Life is not fair sometimes, but it is still life, and for that one should be grateful. The alternative is to not have life at all. Our action and reaction to living in this world can either prepare us or ill equip us to life beyond. No matter what your faith or belief, your spirit should live forever. Exactly how your spirit continues to live depends on you.

As you open yourself to the people in this book, Madeline, Jonathon, Peter, and Samuel, you will see they are similar to you. None were born with special privileges. They were all everyday people with a drive to fly though the heavens. Their journeys to become major airline pilots were more profound than actually being one. The journey to their goal helped them build the strength tosustain what they would endure after they reached their objective.

A pilot of a major airline projects an image to the general public. He or she is looked at as middle aged, well-trained, competent, responsible, intelligent, professional, arrogant, controlling, motivated, know it alls. The point you may not be aware of is what steps each pilot goes through on his or her route to earn a place in the major airline industry flying airplanes. We all have a tendency to look at the result with out appreciating the journey.

This book is an account of four individuals who endured controversy and, with a combination of heart and spirit, claimed redemption as their lives continued. This is NOT a prescription for every pilot, merely the story of these four. They started without prior knowledge of one another, but it would take them working together to persevere through the process of having the same tragedy impact all of them. Ironically, the impact happened at the same time while they were all located in different places.