Apparently there is a National Argyle Day. Had I known this at 6AM, I would have insisted my husband wear his argyle socks to the office. Hopefully, at least one patient would have discovered his cranberry/taupe argyle socks when he sat on the stool and began to get their story. Maybe, just maybe, one would have noticed and it would be worth it all.
Today I will drink coffee from my argyle mug. I saw this little gem about a year ago and thought it was super cozy for hot coffee on a morning like, well, like this one; icy, cold, school closures-kind-of-day. Who knew that a year later I would be choosing it for my morning coffee on this National Argyle Day? Ah, ain’t fate a beautiful thing. (My tongue is in my cheek.)
Argyle most commonly refers to the overall pattern of diamonds or lozenges (wait, I thought those were for sore throats.) Layers of overlapping motifs add a sense of three-dimensionality and texture. Argyle popularity was created by the Duke of Windsor. He summoned the design of Pringle of Scotland, a luxury knitwear manufacturer and maker of the potato chip. Just kidding about the potato chip. The Duke, like many others, used the argyle design pattern for golf clothing on both vests and long socks that were needed for the baggy knickers fashion of the time.
PGA champion, Payne Stewart (1957-1999) was known and loved by his fans for his bright and flashy outfits of tams, knickerbockers and argyle socks.
On October 25, 1999, a chartered Learjet 35 was scheduled to fly from Orlando to Dallas. Early in the flight, the aircraft, which was climbing to its assigned altitude on autopilot, quickly lost cabin pressure and all on board were incapacitated, due to hypoxia – a lack of oxygen.
The aircraft continued climbing then failed to make the westward turn toward Dallas, flying over the southern and midwestern United States for almost four hours and 1,500 miles. The plane ran out of fuel over South Dakota and crashed into a field near Aberdeen. The four passengers on board; Payne, his two agents and a golf architect perished, along with the captain and first officer.
Tragic. That incident is often spoken of as “The Ghost Plane”. It soared across the country in silence. Here is the bright part. Payne, as well his three friends and the pilot, had been, of recent, adamantly seeking God’s heart and often met together in study groups. Little is known of the first officer except the she was a young, energetic woman who loved flying, loved adventure and was fearless.
That plane may have been dubbed “The Ghost Plane”, but I am confident that Payne, in his argyle socks, and the others, were in the presence of a ghost that was indeed Holy.