Like an arrow the little red plane pierced the clouds. He emerged on the other side, leaving behind him a trail of glittering droplets. The pilot smiled. Finally he was gazing upon the white fields of the world’s canopy. A feeling of peace overcame him, he finally felt unchained from the tiresome grip of the earth’s gravity. Here, above the clouds, the sky never darkened. It was either of the bluest blue or sprinkled with countless stars. Human matters faded away in this white desert. He was utterly, completely alone. And so he laughed in glee as the wind rushed around him.
Suddenly, the small plane coughed up some black smoke. The pilot’s laugh died in his throat as he glanced at the smoking wing. The little plane was now leaving a dark trail behind him, like a wounded animal. The black smoke stood out against the white clouds like an ugly scar. The pilot was cursing and groaning as he tried desperately to make the plane fly just a little further. Tears started running down his cheeks before flying in the wind. He had realized that his freedom was an ephemeral illusion; the unforgiving rules of earth had caught up to him. Even his little red plane was not fast enough to allow him an escape from his distressingly familiar world! Soon, the clouds swallowed the red dot, and the heavy silence returned to the white fields. The black smoke promptly dissipated, as if it was ashamed of disturbing the peace of this pristine world. With it vanished the last trace of the unfortunate pilot.
He had dared to defy the fundamental rules of the universe, and he had paid the price of his insolence. But he fell with a smile on his face, because for a brief period of his life he had felt truly free. He knew that others will dash above the clouds, regardless of the cost, because defying the rules is the most thrilling venture one can ever enjoy. Indeed, in a human world, even primates can fly.