Book excerpt: Whether piloting a plane and enjoying the panorama below or watching a model you built soar into the blue among the clouds above, flying is always an adventure. Tex Newman looks back at his love affair with airplanes in this book, starting as a boy growing up in West Texas during and after World War II. After the war was won, the military began to get rid of the old fighters and bombers that had fought so valiantly. The author’s hometown airport was a refueling place for these old veterans as they made their way from the East Coast to the graveyards out in the Arizona desert. While the pilots were gone, the old planes would sit and wait patiently for the author and his friends to crawl through them. But when the author lost his eye as a boy, all hopes of being a fighter pilot were lost, and he was in danger of becoming depressed. With the help of the Lord, however, he pressed on and even became a pilot later in life. Join the author as he celebrates his faith, his blessings, and his love of flying in Big Lessons from Little Airplanes.