News

Know the limit of your kite

  • Published
  • By Chaplain (Lt. Col.) Paul Gunn
  • 14th Flying Training Wing Chapel
COLUMBUS AIR FORCE BASE, Miss. --  In my luggage I packed a small kite, one I'd chosen on Amazon after reading the five-star ratings. It was a small, parafoil style which required no rods.

It collapsed completely flat and occupied almost no space in my luggage. I had an image of a father trying to hang on to yester year by flying a kite with his 18-year-old son. Perhaps Matt would play along and be my little boy just one more time.

The next morning we left for Bimini, Bahamas, a special place that’s become a home away from home for my family. The father-son trip was a high school graduation gift.

We took the kite to the Radio Beach and launched it into the wind. Immediately, it went straight upward, but after a minute or so it became unstable and fell to the ground. We tried numerous relaunches, but to no avail. I tried modifying the kite with some rudimentary objects. No improvement. Finally, Matt gave up and walked into the water. He was entertained by my refusal to give up. After quite a long while, I gave up and joined him.

As Matt and I floated and tossed with the large waves, I said I would return it to Amazon and demand a $7.50 refund. I would give the kite a one-star rating and warn other Amazon shoppers! "Rip off!" The subject of our conversation changed and we rode the waves a while longer.

The next afternoon while getting ready to return to the beach, I decided to give it one more try. From our vantage point at the Methodist manse, the water was almost calm, indicating very little wind. We walked to the beach and, in doubt, tried one more launch. This time the kite caught the wind, went straight up, and stayed in the air. It flew steadily, with no movement at all except for the two colorful tails bouncing in the breeze. I took a large inflatable float far into the water and the kite pulled me for hundreds of yards. The day before was a disaster; today was a success. The difference was the wind.

We learned that it was important to know the limit of the kite. Our kite, so colorful with many stripes of color was a light breeze design and could simply not handle the heavy winds of yesterday. I turned our discussion into something my kids are all too familiar with: dadvice. “Son, sometimes we take on too much.” Desiring to be liked, desiring to be helpful, desiring to fix things, taking on more and more - eventually the wind is too great for our kites and we crash.
When we become overwhelmed with too many responsibilities, we become unhealthy with misaligned priorities. Over time, our kites can grow and take on heavier winds, but even then every kite has its limit. Know the limit of your kite.