Happy ending to a nail-biting saga

There aren't many news stories that literally grab me by the lapels and shake my equalibrium.

But Thursday's coverage of Falcon Heene's journey - or at least what we all thought was a journey - was one of them.

The plot was simple but bizarre: An innocent 6-year-old boy climbs aboard his father's saucer-shaped helium balloon and said balloon lifts off into the sky. That's the account his older brother gave.

It turned out not to be true - luckily.

But for two hours and 50 miles I was on pins and needles, as I think millions of other Americans were. As the balloon made its way across two counties - powered by a jet stream that sent it spinning at times and dipping at others - the tension built.

And along the way, speculation grew that the boy may have fallen from the makeshift craft. That made the end of the journey all the more heart-wrenching when the balloon bumped gently down in a dirt field and the passenger compartment was found to be empty.

But as we all know, it turned out the boy was safe at home the whole time, hiding in a
cardboard box in the garage rafters. Hiding as 6-year-old boys are wont to do.

So what are we to take from all of this?

I really don't know. Maybe it's simply a message of what might have happened. Maybe we just need to realize that life matters - really matters.

So what's my business angle on this? I guess I don't have one. But I know I'm going to give my daughter a hug when I get home.