Sailing Through Heaven

Flying was always one of my big dreams.

I sat in awe on the tractors watching the crop dusters skimming the tops of the crops, duck under the power lines and turn on a dime to do it all over again. I heard stories of skydivers and dreamed of following their steps out that fateful door. One day I got my chance to spread my wings.

Each summer we celebrated many family reunions. Sometimes we met at a lake, a farm or a church. But always there was plenty to eat and lots of people I didn't know.

I found myself bored at an extended Jensen reunion one summer; I wasn't even sure who the Jensens were. There was a few kids my age and I was trying to hang out with them. They seemed as bored of the potluck and stories of old people as I was. Then we heard a very intriguing rumor.

In an instance we were off to a freshly cut hay field to investigate. There we found an old Chevy pickup, a rope and large piece of cloth. It was true. Someone had a para sail and they were going to see if we could get someone up in the air. Pick me...

Some older kid got in the harness.

"Now remember, keep running until you are way up in the air." The driver of the truck was imparting wisdom out the window.

"What?.." Oh well the truck was tearing down the field and this kid was running his guts out, since he was tied to that truck I suppose he had little choice. Then like magic, he shot into the air. I wasn't sure if it was because of the para sail or if he had turned into some sort of inverted helicopter - his legs were a blur of movement.

The old Chevy turned a giant turn and made its way back to the group of admiring teens. Oh please let me go. I was just begging to go. I was so sure that somehow my mom, using her safety powers, would somehow appear and snatch me from the jaws of death that I was so willingly ready to enter.

A big guy got in front of me and leapt into the harness. Let's see. The bigger you are the ... faster you have to run? Run he did; at least he ran for a while. It seems that his take off speed was a tiny bit faster than his fastest sprint. After getting the alfalfa out of his teeth he stood up and they tried again. This time they ran into the wind.

Now it was my turn. I was a little skinny for my age and they weren't certain the harness went that small but I assured them it was just fine. The truck tires spun and I took that first step or two towards freedom from gravity. I suddenly thought, "What the heck am I doing! Too late."

I think I continued to run through most of the flight, even though I was in the air in two or three steps. At maximum altitude I let go of the harness and spread my arms and legs out and screamed in pure delight.

Floating back to the ground, I now knew why angels flew and didn't walk, because I think I felt a little bit of Heaven up there.