What historical event would you 'fly over?'

Disneyland ride sparks my imagination about seeing the past's meaningful moments

WHEN WE WERE at Disneyland’s California Adventure recently, one of my favorite rides was “Soarin’ Around the World.” For those unfamiliar with it, you and 86 other people strap into what amounts to a giant flight simulator for what feels like a virtual hang-gliding trip.

At takeoff, the theater gets dark, you’re slowly lifted into the air and — thanks to a 180-degree dome film screen — you’re made to feel as if you’re flying over more than a dozen scenes worldwide, from the Matterhorn in Switzerland/Italy to the Great Wall of China to the Eiffel Tower in Paris to my two favorites, Iguazu Falls in Brazil and Argentina and the sailboats in a Sydney, Australia harbor.

Three of the scenes include a scent — rose blossoms in the Taj Mahal scene, grass in the Africa scene and a sea breeze in the South Pacific scene. Artificial wind in your face enhances the this-is-real feeling.

I’m always disappointed the whale that splashes in front of you in one scene doesn’t trigger mist in your face, but beggars can’t be choosers. It’s a splendid ride, relaxing, realistic and breathtakingly beautiful.

Anyway, the ride — I think we did it half a dozen times in two days — got my imagination going. If a similar ride existed that could fly over historical events, not current-day places, what such moments would I want to see? That, in turn, got me curious about you, our Heart, Humor & Hope readers, the people who make this Substack venture possible.

What events would you want on your ride? I want to hear from you; in fact, that’s the whole point of this column. I’m often reminded of the great wisdom, curiosity and perspectives you offer — and sometimes I get so busy writing columns that I don’t listen to you as much as I should.

Let’s not limit this “flyover” to what you can see from the air; lots of great history takes place inside structures, behind closed doors, wherever. Let’s assume you could drop into these moments. Stay awhile. Listen. Learn. But no changing history. Your job is not to get involved in history but to simply observe it.

Let’s hear from you on what three to five events you’d choose and why.

If you need some prime-pumping, here are a few that come to mind for me, though that doesn’t mean you can’t choose any of them for your own reasons:

Jesus preaches the Sermon on the Mount, circa 30 AD. His command to “love thy neighbor” and similar admonitions of humility make it one of the most widely quoted — and least adhered to — parts of Scripture. I’d be interested to see people’s astonishment at Jesus’ take-charge approach and his audacity to set the moral bar so high. (“Love thy enemy? Who is this dude?”) What’s more, I’d like to see the looks on the faces of the self-righteous Pharisees when Jesus rebukes them for their hypocrisy, their focus on outward appearances and their neglect for the concepts of love, mercy and justice.

The Lewis and Clark Expedition reaches the Pacific Ocean after 18 months of trekking from Missouri, Nov. 15, 1805. Seeing where the Columbia River flows into the Pacific Ocean was only a symbolic victory — the destination was not the journey — but I have to believe the men were stoked. Just north of the river, near Long Beach, Wash., Meriwether Lewis and William Clark carved their initials in a tree and began planning for their return trip. That’d be a cool moment.