Do you believe airplanes fly?

Do you believe airplanes fly? Of course you do; you see them every day in the sky. You go to your hangar with your plane and your friends, and everybody is happy. What kind of person could deny such a self-evident fact as airplanes flying?

Leaving your hangar where all of your friends are, you venture out into the world to let other people know what joyous times you and your friends are having with planes. You have flown your plane around the world, seen many beautiful things with your plane, and with it done many great things for your community and the world.

You know the aircraft manual inside and out. You have studied it forwards and backwards, trying to get the most out of your beautiful flying machine. At the slightest sign of trouble on your flights, you head straight to the manual: it has the answer for everything that could go wrong. The manual also details how a pilot is to properly treat his guests—on and off the plane. This particular section is a favorite studying topic for you and your pilot friends.

Some of your pilot friends tell you of people outside the hangar who have never flown on an airplane, don't think they would be much fun at all, and doubt planes could fly at all. What's more, some even have the audacity to insist planes don't exist! Not believing your friend, and wanting to show him up, you venture out into the world—surely something as awesome as riding an airplane is something everyone would do!

To each person you meet, you tell of your plane, how everybody can ride for free—they only need ask! It's so much fun, it will be great! When asked about details, you refer to the manual; it specifies why people should fly and how they can fly—both very easy to do.

You go all over town—the market, the university, the city hall—trying to find people who don't believe in planes. You find not only are there some people just as your friend described, you find, to your horror, most people haven't flown. That they don't want to. And, they don't think planes can fly. Several were quite hostile, questioning your intellect, wondering if you were mentally ill! They constantly berated you for appealing to an "old book" full of nonsense—that book is the manual! It can't be wrong!

The one or two who actually engaged you in a somewhat-serious manner came up with questions and statements that—quite frankly—went over your head, and sounded like ridiculous objections to boot. Yes, your plane is perfectly awesome; you can't fathom how others' misfortunes affect your plane's awesomeness.

Who doesn't believe in a plane? You have seen one! You have flown in one! You have your very own plane!

You go back to your hangar, to your plane, to where you won't be made fun of, where you will be accepted. Your pilot friends shake their heads with you as you tell of your adventures outside the hangar, neither of you asking the real question: why don't they believe in planes? Or, if you do, you don't follow through and try to really understand the answer.