My Dad passed away exactly a month ago. I was working in Italy when I found out and had just seen him a few weeks before. His death was unexpected and left me with so many things I still wanted to say.
He was a great man, the type of person that touched everyone he met. I will never be able to express in words what a special person he was, and certainly do not have enough space here, but my brother created a website in his honor www.jimwhowell.com . Many people have shared their stories and have truly captured what an amazing person he was. I imagine he will continue to inspire people through the life he led.
I know that he will always be my greatest hero and one who has set the mark for how I will try to live my life. That, without a doubt, is the greatest gift he has given to me.
My Dad did everything, and did it well; but one of his greatest passions was aviation. He spent 9 years in our garage building a most beautiful, perfect, RV-4. I spent many hours talking with Dad as he puttered away on the airplane. Okay, mostly I played around and got in the way, but nonetheless, I "helped".
Once he finished "The Mistress" I spent perfect Wyoming mornings cruising along the Wind Rivers and holding my breath as we looped and rolled and stalled and buzzed the house. Needless to say, his love of aviation has been contagious.I am now beginning my journey in aviation and am pursuing my private pilot's license. It is something I have always wanted to do but the timing was never right...until now. I had hoped my Dad would be the one to do the final check ride, but his time here ended too soon. I titled this post "Yaw" because his death has sent my life in a new direction different from my intended course.
As I have begun my lessons I have found myself wishing I could ask him questions or share my fears, my excitement and my successes (and hopefully only minor failures). I intend to post all of those thoughts here...not only to document my experience but also to share stories about Dad. My goal is to one day fly "The Mistress" and carry on his tradition. He was always passionate about introducing others, especially kids, to the beauty of flight. I promise to do the same.
This is my "Aviation Therapy".
