As night descends, I am reminded that one more day has passed since Malaysian airlines flight 370 went missing. While the world speculates on the circumstances, searchers scan the ocean for lost wreckage. Family’s wait for a word that might bring their loved ones home and investigators pour over every piece of information that might help them solve this puzzle. A bitter truth is that the Boeing 777 plane may never be found and the hardest obstacle for those that wait might be the passing of time with scarce information. Sadly, I understand what waiting feels like, as sand slips through the hourglass burying hope with each falling grain.
On April 29, 1982, a small plane departed Fox Creek, Alberta on route to Prince George, British Colombia. Sadly, the plane never arrived at its destination. Ricky Allan Gascon, my then 29-year-old cousin, was on that plane. I remember my parent’s sadness when they learned his fate and shared the news. I recall their hope that the plane would be found and that by some miracle, Ricky and other passengers might have survived. Thirty-two years later, Ricky and those that took this journey with him are still missing.
At the time, the loss didn’t affect me much. I was 17 years old and had never met this cousin. It’s almost 32 years later. Now, I ponder what his family must have suffered as they waited for answers that never came. I’m sure my aunt and other cousins must still look at the sky and suffer, having never found their beloved son/brother’s remains. After 32 years, how can a plane still be missing?
I have faced loss. I understand how grief can twist like a knife in your gut while you wait for a resolution that might never come. Waiting is the hardest part. As time passes, the hope lessens for those who boarded Malaysian Flight 370. However, if there is hope to be found in this difficult situation, I pray the keen eyes of intelligence discover a seed of truth soon, so a world’s search will come to an end and Flight 370 will be LOST no more.