When taking flight, they say the riskiest part
occurs when belted-in and fastened-tight
while hurling down the runway (knuckles white)
compressed against the seat: just at the start

of instant lift, wheels in the well, the point
where power-up and V-speed meet, before
the bump (hydraulic thump) retracting whir,
with S O Bs – us Souls On Board – intent.

But engines aren’t what make the gizmo go,
or give it oomph to rocket toward the sky;
it’s down-home folk, our neighbors, you and I,
(the superstitious kind – those in the know)
the ones who finger-circle in our seat,
pull-up on armrests, elevate our feet.