minorwork
08-30-2007, 11:05 AM
'Been some quibbling about using 'faith' when I should have used 'trust' here. But I'll stick with faith just 'cause of what adrenaline does to ya' when makin' your first jump. My first jump was the summer of 1975.
FAITH by minorwork
Go jump from a plane. Skydive. Only then will I believe you may have an adequate understanding of the word "faith". Agreement on the use of the word "faith" is paramount to a serious comparison of its religious use. All readers should be in a hopefully general agreement that faith is a belief in things not seen. The point is how MUCH faith. How do you prove your faith? How much money would you bet on an event faith says will occur? Would you bet on future predictions?
The skydiver on his first jump bets his LIFE on faith! I remember my "prayer." "I sure hope all this stuff works." Well sure after a coupla’ observation rides and an intense 16 hours of training I had faith enough in the systems that I would risk it. At least one time. Sure was a confidence booster that the guys teaching me jumped every chance they got. They were experienced. I had seen them.
A lot different than being taught by a tape recorder preacher or a priest on TV oblivious to his own ignorance talking and believing himself, though he has no experiences. Heck this guy "Sonny" hung with the jumpers at the bars. Never made a jump in his life. Wore the jumper T-shirts, talked the talk. When asked by a little gal if he was a skydiver, Sonny said, " Honey. I’m the best." He had as much fun as any of us at the place. You don’t have to know what you’re talkin’ about, just act like it. The eager ignorant, yearning to be led, will believe the message.
Bet your life and be free. Be a bird. Free for a while. Little physical effort required, jumping is as easy as, well, falling off a log. The work involved in the act is a purely psychological endeavor.
Knowing the first jump is to be made in a week, it is a rare jumper who does not dream of dying from impact a dozen times. Then you go and train 2 days and the winds are too high to throw out first jump students. Another week of waking up to the roar of the 125 mph wind of free fall in your ears, the whole of your body tingling as entering Soul jars the body once more after another inevitable impact. Why am I doing this?
And this anticipation is natural to the intelligent. The cabbage heads are those that ask really stupid questions. "If my chute don’t open you’ll fly down and save me, right?" Of course a good jump master hears a lot of strange questions. Once while practicing cutting away a faulty main chute and getting the reserve out, an observant student asked "What do you do if the reserve don’t open?" "Well," said Don, " we’ve got a procedure for that, but ya’ gotta’ be quick. Take off your helmet and put your feet in it. Now go ahead and practice that." After a few rather feeble attempts to accomplish an obviously difficult procedure, the student asked what good this would do. Don didn’t miss a beat. "Won’t do you no good, but it makes you easier to pick up." Yep. Real confidence builders.
Finally a jump master sticks his head in the hangar and says he has some bad news for the first jump students. Every one thinks the plane is broke again and dread yet another week of terror dreams. "Yep," he says,"The winds are dying. Ya’ gotta’ jump!" Skydivers are possessed of the most morbid sense of humor.
So, before the pilot gets in, you hook up your static line to a seat belt bracket and practice your arch, count, and pretend rip cord pull. Course’ it’s mighty hard to concentrate when a local Air Guard jet breaks the sound barrier right near the drop zone. Then another hot dog pilot does it. Pretty quick the whole bunch of them flying cowboys are trying to break windows with their bu-bu-bu-BOOMS. So ya’ step out from under the wing to see these guys. Course, it don’t take long to realize the booms is your heart. Man I am scared shitless. What possessed me to try this? Oh man. Oh man. Oh good. Finally my heart’s settled down. Don’t think I coulda’ heard the jump master say "GO" what with all that noise.
On take off roll I clearly remember Dago telling me he knew what I was thinking. "You’re thinking to yourself. ‘Me and my big mouth. ’" Now here’s a guy that knows. Kinda’ like doubtin’ Thomas of the Bible. Born skeptic if I’ve ever seen one. If you’re gonna’ believe anybody it’d be him.
Faith? Yeah, sure. But not blind.
That be it. Great to be here.
FAITH by minorwork
Go jump from a plane. Skydive. Only then will I believe you may have an adequate understanding of the word "faith". Agreement on the use of the word "faith" is paramount to a serious comparison of its religious use. All readers should be in a hopefully general agreement that faith is a belief in things not seen. The point is how MUCH faith. How do you prove your faith? How much money would you bet on an event faith says will occur? Would you bet on future predictions?
The skydiver on his first jump bets his LIFE on faith! I remember my "prayer." "I sure hope all this stuff works." Well sure after a coupla’ observation rides and an intense 16 hours of training I had faith enough in the systems that I would risk it. At least one time. Sure was a confidence booster that the guys teaching me jumped every chance they got. They were experienced. I had seen them.
A lot different than being taught by a tape recorder preacher or a priest on TV oblivious to his own ignorance talking and believing himself, though he has no experiences. Heck this guy "Sonny" hung with the jumpers at the bars. Never made a jump in his life. Wore the jumper T-shirts, talked the talk. When asked by a little gal if he was a skydiver, Sonny said, " Honey. I’m the best." He had as much fun as any of us at the place. You don’t have to know what you’re talkin’ about, just act like it. The eager ignorant, yearning to be led, will believe the message.
Bet your life and be free. Be a bird. Free for a while. Little physical effort required, jumping is as easy as, well, falling off a log. The work involved in the act is a purely psychological endeavor.
Knowing the first jump is to be made in a week, it is a rare jumper who does not dream of dying from impact a dozen times. Then you go and train 2 days and the winds are too high to throw out first jump students. Another week of waking up to the roar of the 125 mph wind of free fall in your ears, the whole of your body tingling as entering Soul jars the body once more after another inevitable impact. Why am I doing this?
And this anticipation is natural to the intelligent. The cabbage heads are those that ask really stupid questions. "If my chute don’t open you’ll fly down and save me, right?" Of course a good jump master hears a lot of strange questions. Once while practicing cutting away a faulty main chute and getting the reserve out, an observant student asked "What do you do if the reserve don’t open?" "Well," said Don, " we’ve got a procedure for that, but ya’ gotta’ be quick. Take off your helmet and put your feet in it. Now go ahead and practice that." After a few rather feeble attempts to accomplish an obviously difficult procedure, the student asked what good this would do. Don didn’t miss a beat. "Won’t do you no good, but it makes you easier to pick up." Yep. Real confidence builders.
Finally a jump master sticks his head in the hangar and says he has some bad news for the first jump students. Every one thinks the plane is broke again and dread yet another week of terror dreams. "Yep," he says,"The winds are dying. Ya’ gotta’ jump!" Skydivers are possessed of the most morbid sense of humor.
So, before the pilot gets in, you hook up your static line to a seat belt bracket and practice your arch, count, and pretend rip cord pull. Course’ it’s mighty hard to concentrate when a local Air Guard jet breaks the sound barrier right near the drop zone. Then another hot dog pilot does it. Pretty quick the whole bunch of them flying cowboys are trying to break windows with their bu-bu-bu-BOOMS. So ya’ step out from under the wing to see these guys. Course, it don’t take long to realize the booms is your heart. Man I am scared shitless. What possessed me to try this? Oh man. Oh man. Oh good. Finally my heart’s settled down. Don’t think I coulda’ heard the jump master say "GO" what with all that noise.
On take off roll I clearly remember Dago telling me he knew what I was thinking. "You’re thinking to yourself. ‘Me and my big mouth. ’" Now here’s a guy that knows. Kinda’ like doubtin’ Thomas of the Bible. Born skeptic if I’ve ever seen one. If you’re gonna’ believe anybody it’d be him.
Faith? Yeah, sure. But not blind.
That be it. Great to be here.