Night flight to San Francisco; chase the moon across…
““Night flight to San Francisco; chase the moon across America. God, it’s been years since I was on a plane. When we hit 35,000 feet we’ll have reached the tropopause, the great belt of calm air, as close as I’ll ever get to the ozone. I dreamed we were there. The plane leapt the tropopause, the safe air, and attained the outer rim, the ozone, which was ragged and torn, patches of it threadbare as old cheesecloth, and that was frightening. But I saw something that only I could see because of my astonishing ability to see such things: Souls were rising, from the earth far below, souls of the dead, of people who had perished, from famine, from war, from the plague, and they floated up, like skydivers in reverse, limbs all akimbo, wheeling and spinning. And the souls of these departed joined hands, clasped ankles, and formed a web, a great net of souls, and the souls were three-atom oxygen molecules of the stuff of ozone, and the outer rim absorbed them and was repaired. Nothing’s lost forever. In this world, there’s a kind of painful progress. Longing for what we’ve left behind, and dreaming ahead. At least I think that’s so.””
About This Quote
This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.
The narrator envisions a flight that transcends physical limits, seeing souls as ozone‑repairing agents, symbolizing hope that loss can heal the world.
In simple terms: Seeing loss as a chance for healing and renewal.
Key Takeaway
Recognize that grief can inspire restorative action.
Themes
hope
healing
environment
spirituality
loss
Mood
reflective
hopeful
melancholy
Type
poetic
philosophical
When to use this quote
- personal reflection
- creative writing
- public speaking
Key Concepts
interconnectedness
renewal
cosmic perspective
Questions to Reflect On
- How can we turn personal grief into collective healing?
- What does the ozone symbolize in your life?
A Different Perspective
The metaphor may be too abstract for practical application.