It's Cold Up There!

Spoken by Supreme Master Ching Hai,
Florida, U.S.A. October 2, 1999
(Originally in Chinese)

Once, an old lady felt very lonesome after her husband died, so she went to learn how to fly a helicopter. After learning all the basic actions and instructions, she was told by the control tower, "You can take off now, but because you are alone in the helicopter, when you reach 3,000 meters, you must contact us on the radio to report your situation. We will guide you from here, depending on what you need."
The old lady said, "Okay! No problem. It's a piece of cake!" So, up she went. When she reached an altitude of 3,000 meters, she called on the radio, "Everything is fine. It's wonderful! I never dreamt that flying a helicopter would be so fantastic. I am really happy to be able to fly a helicopter at such an old age. It is really wonderful!"

The control tower responded, "All right! Then you may fly higher where it is even more beautiful and more fun. After you have ascended another 3,000 meters, please contact us again to report your situation." She climbed another 3,000 meters and said, "It's beautiful up here! I am now above the clouds. It's really wonderful. May I go a little higher?" The control tower agreed, "Okay, but be careful! Call us again after going up another 3,000 meters." "Okay," came her reply.

But that was the last message she sent. No matter how the tower tried to contact her, there was no reply. Suddenly, there was a loud bang and the helicopter plummeted right before their eyes. Bruised all over, the old lady climbed out of the wreckage. Everyone was shocked and an ambulance was quickly called. "Dear Grandma, why did you suddenly cease all contact after flying up further? Did something go wrong? What happened?" To these questions, she answered, "It was deadly cold up there, so I just switched off the fan!"