A Clear Blue Sky — by Dan Lynn
By Dan Lynn
Early in my career, I was in sales at AT&T, in an office in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania — top floor. One April afternoon in 1991, a colleague suddenly yelled: "Oh my god! Oh my god! I just saw a plane crash into a helicopter!"
I ran to the window. It was a beautiful day — clear blue skies. There was a cloud of smoke in the sky where the collision happened.
Instinct took over. I ran downstairs to the parking lot, jumped in my car, and drove toward the smoke. Maybe I could help.
What I found has never left me. The aircraft had come down at an elementary school. There were casualties on the playground. First responders were arriving, and I realized almost immediately there was nothing I could do — I would only be in the way. So I stood there, helpless. And then I drove back to a world that was still having an ordinary day.
I later learned what had happened. The plane was carrying Senator John Heinz of Pennsylvania. Its landing gear indicator had failed, and a helicopter had come alongside to take a look. They collided over Merion Elementary School. Seven people died that day — the Senator, the crews of both aircraft, and two first-graders at recess.
I've carried that day for more than thirty years, and I'll be honest with you: I still don't know what the lesson is. I've built a platform on lessons — and this is the experience that resists one.
Life is about experiences- good and bad. Hopefully, more good than bad. This is one of my bad ones.
Questions this Key Learning answers
What do you do when a painful experience has no clear lesson?
The author does not force the experience into a tidy lesson. More than thirty years later, he remains honest that he still does not know what it means. His reflection is simply that life contains good and bad experiences, and some events resist explanation even when a person has spent years looking for lessons.
How do I know when trying to help will only get in the way?
Dan Lynn followed his instinct and drove toward the crash because he thought he might help. Once he saw first responders arriving, he realized almost immediately that there was nothing useful he could do and that staying involved would only put him in the way. He accepted his helplessness and left.
How do I return to ordinary life after witnessing something terrible?
The author describes driving back to a world that was still having an ordinary day, even though what he had witnessed never left him. He offers no simple method for resolving that contrast. Instead, his story shows that a terrible experience can remain present for decades without yielding a clear lesson.