Flight with Rudy
By: Nadine Hernandez, Jazmine Martinez and Dez Nunez
Some say that at 61-years-old, flying a plane is beyond their ambitions. However, Rudy Navarro lives by the philosophy of staying young and active, both mentally and physically. For years, Navarro has put his energy into avid cycling where he spends three hours biking from Yorba Linda to Newport Beach and back. Overall the trip ends up being around 90 to 95 miles.
“It’s only me, my music and my bike.”
He also tries to keep his brain active by reading seven books a year. By far, “The Alchemist” is one book that he could pick up and read multiple times for the intentional meaning and philosophical reminders.
“You [have] to stay on track and stay focused. Life within your means and out of your means, and dream sometimes.”
Navarro stands by the idea of living out one’s destiny, always in search of it no matter how long it may be and take. There are times in which a person needs to be goal-oriented and directional, but it is also necessary to dream for the sake of experiencing the quality of life. He also mentions a metaphor from the text that he uses while cycling:
“There was a portion in that book where he told the wind to back off, and it did.”
People are connected to the external world, which makes it unpredictable, even as tedious as winning a raffle to a free flight. Navarro does not take it for granted, nor fears the opportunity, simply appreciating what is in front of him with life and its spontaneity, including the idea of being thousands of feet above ground and behind the wheel of a plane.