A tragedy

It feels much different when you see the wreckage on the evening news, the charred and mangled pile of twisted metal which barely resembles an aircraft, and can hear the voice in your head of the person who was killed in the crash.

Today, a tragedy happened when Capt. Miles Selby was killed during a routine training mission. He's a relative, not immediate but not so distant that I never met him. I've sat across the dinner table from him, talked with him, knew him. It is shocking to see his face on the news; it is strange to hear people who didn't know him talk of him and his accomplishments.

Becoming a Snowbird is a tremendous accomplishment that few military pilots ever achieve. My dad had gone to an air show where the Snowbirds were flying and he said that it was like Miles was a rock star - there was an autograph tent on the grounds where the pilots would sit and sign autographs to a nearly endless line of fans.

From what I remember of Miles, and it's not much as I hadn't spent much time with him in my life, he was an incredibly down to earth, kind, friendly human being. It is a great loss that he has been taken in this tragedy. It breaks my heart to even think of what his parents are going through right now. If you knew how Miles' father spoke of him, how his father was Miles' biggest fan, how his father's eyes would light up any time he could tell you about the latest accomplishment his son had achieved, it would fill you with a tremendous sadness.

Today is a sad day.



Rest in peace.