I have always been an opportunist and, rather than following some burning ambition, I have fantasised and dreamed of all sorts of things including flying. If a door opens into my dream, I will go through it. My closest friend right through school and beyond was crazy about flying and I just followed along in his wake. We both joined the ATC together, we both went solo in gliders and we both went to RAF Hornchurch to try for a Flying Scholarship. He got one and I didn't. He went on to become a fast jet pilot, sadly no longer with us.
I had seen my opportunity to become a pilot through National Service but I escaped that by 17 days when they cancelled it. So it was on to a technical education and boring job, the next opportunity to fly coming when I moved to Bedford and joined the London Gliding Club where I got up to Bronze C standard.
After another move down to the South coast I found that joining the local ATC Gliding School gave me the opportunity to learn to fly a beautiful Tiger Moth very cheaply. Family reasons and oil prices forced me to stop flying after about 7 years and then, 23 years later, I won £500 worth of flying from the local flying school. Yet another opportunity to get flying again, greatly assisted by Gordon's 40% subsidy through an NVQ, and I have never looked back. Taking another opportunity to buy a share about 10 years ago I have since enjoyed flying beyond my wildest dreams. (Well, perhaps not all of them but there's still time)