A Leap of Faith

It was a perfect autumn day for flying. The weather was sunny and clear. There was just enough wind to make the direction of the breeze visually obvious on the surface of the water. I was cruising at 1500 feet on the downwind leg of a circuit when my flight instructor told me to land in the bay below us and to taxi on step to the island at the end of the bay. I completed the manoeuvre without a lot of thought until Sam told me to pull up to the dock of the only water access cottage on the island. He proceeded to open the door and exit the Champion two seat pontoon airplane. The next thing I heard I am glad that I had no prior knowledge thereof. He said that it was time for me to fly solo and that I was to push off, taxi into position, take off and fly one circuit and that I was to enter the bay on step again and pick him up. He proceeded in a very relaxed manner to roll yet another cigarette by hand. Other than being terrified at the prospect of not having him behind me in the cockpit, I took the news in stride and proceeded to execute just what he had told me to do. I have never felt more alone in my life of eighteen years as I slowly and carefully taxied out and turned the small plane into wind. He had chosen a spot in the fairly calm lake that had a take off and landing length that was literally miles in length. I suspect he had used it many times in the past for just this purpose.

After my checklist was complete and the rudder pulled up, I advanced the throttle and correctly placed the pontoons on step by pushing forward on the stick. As the Champ moved forward at an increasing rate of speed, I watched the tachometer and the air speed indicator until I hit the proper take off speed. I thought that number would be etched in my memory forever, but I must admit that as I sit in front of this keyboard so many years later, I have no idea what the proper lift off speed is for a Champion Cub. But I digress…In order to lift a pontoon plane off the water it is necessary that you break the suction caused by the water by lifting one pontoon off the water first and then rotating the stick ever so expertly so as to lift off the second pontoon. I lifted the left off first, followed by the right and it was as if the plane had become suddenly feather light. Indeed it leaped in to the air and the feeling was quite simply exhilarating. I climbed to circuit height and completed the circuit in a manner of minutes. I set down the pontoons onto the water of the bay in one of the smoothest landings I was ever to experience. I would later attempt to learn landing on skis and wheels. Pontoons are so much easier. It is like you are on a rail the second you stall out and touch the water. The plane proceeds straight ahead or indeed exactly where you steer it on step with almost no effort. Landing on wheels, as I was to learn later, presented a great adventure in trying to keep the airplane on the runway after every touch down. Sam greeted me with a grin as I taxied up to the dock. I did eventually earn a private pilot’s licence, but flew very few hours after that spring that I graduated from secondary school and made ready to attend university.

In my memory are etched both the exhilaration of the take off and the feeling of security of the landing on that day. Very close to exactly thirty years after that day, I made a decision while walking down a city street that was the equivalent to breaking the suction holding me down by lifting my left and then my right spiritual pontoon and leaping into the life of faith in Jesus Christ. There is no doubt about it. Accepting Jesus as your saviour is a leap of faith and it is both scary and exhilarating. Every time I land, spiritually speaking, it is as if those pontoons are on rails. Wherever I decide to go with His guidance, I know every time that I will pull in straight and safe. My saviour keeps me away from the skis and the wheels.

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