September 3, 2010

"When you come to the end of all the light you know, and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: Either you will be given something solid to stand on or you will learn to fly."

~Physicist Edward Teller

I was in the Marine Corp from 1969 until late 1971.  While I was in Viet Nam my dad bought a 1946 Globe Swift.  (The picture at the left is not the aircraft but it's similar).  The Swift had been wrecked.  The wings, the landing gears and the canopy were damaged.  Dad began to rebuild the aircraft and in the process decided to paint the fuselage a camouflage with shark's teeth similar to General Claire L. Chennault's Flying Tigers. 

Check out this web site: http://www.flyingtigersvideo.com/default.html

When I came home from Viet Nam, dad taught me how to fly the Swift.  I had gotten my pilots license when I was 17 and flew up until I joined the Marine Corps. 

The Swift was a tail-dragger as compared to the tricycle gear aircraft I was used to flying (aircraft with tricycle gear pictured above).  The tricycle aircraft has a nose gear; the tail-dragger has a wheel in the back, under the rudder of the aircraft.  I eventually learned to fly the tail-dragging Swift and flew it more that any tricycle geared aircraft. 

The little Swift flew like a WWII fighter.  I never actually flew a WWII fighter, just assumed the Swift flew like one.  I would fly it out over the Mississippi River, following the bends and curves the river took.  Sometimes I'd make low passes over the river, flying past barges taking grain and coal to who knows where.  I flew up to see my friend Ronnie in Millersberg, Missouri.  He lived on a farm and I would buzz his house until he came out and waved at me.  Then I would fly to the nearby airport, land and wait for him to come and pick me up.  We'd spend the day together and late in the afternoon he'd take me back to the airport and I'd fly home to St. Louis.

One day I decided to see how high the Swift would fly.  Together we climbed to almost 12,000 feet MSL.  MSL is an abbreviation for Mean Sea Level.  It is the measurement of the average height of the oceans surface.  St. Louis was about 550' - 600' above sea level.  So I flew the Swift about 11,500 feet above St. Louis.  Once I got to that height the Swift wouldn't climb anymore.  Every aircraft has a limit on how high it will fly; because air gets thinner the higher you go. 

When the Swift refused to go any higher I pulled back on the power and let it start its descent back down.  It took a while to come down to the altitude that I was used to flying, maybe 20 to 30 minutes.  But during that time I was aware of flying, being in control above the surface of the earth where I spent most of my time.  For that short period of time I felt a tingling within my body.  My spirit seemed to soar with the little Swift and we became one, together.  I remember landing, taxing back to the tie-down, turning off the engine and getting out.  As the sun set I touched the wings of the Swift and felt again that connection we'd had only a few moments before, flying. 

That was one of the last times I ever flew by myself.  As time went on, there were other things that began to occupy my life.  But I will always remember the time I became one with that little aircraft, that 1946 Globe Swift.

Since I first heard Teller's quote at a National Youth Workers Convention the words have always reminded me of that last time I flew in the Swift.  There have been many times when I had to take that step out into the darkness; that place of unknowing.  Sometimes I'm too scared to move, but there are times I take that step out in faith and find something better.  Bruce Reed Pullen, in his book "Discovering Celtic Christianity," lists the marks of a Pilgrim.

Ø     Quest - searching for what is ultimately important, moving toward a goal

Ø     Flexibility - adapting to the situation, for there are many paths to our destination

Ø     Patience - calmly enduring trying situations

Ø     Simplicity - taking only what we need with us

Ø     Dedication - committing ourselves to achieving the goal

Ø     Risk - taking a chance that what lies ahead is better than what has been

Ø     Joy - delighting in what we encounter along the way

I want to take that risk and step out into the darkness, hoping for something better.  And when I won't look for something solid to stand on.  I want to learn how to fly again.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X7A5tXcoJ0g&feature=fvw

An awesome flying video to watch.