Final A GENERATIONAL DREAM by Becky Harris

FINAL > Becky Harris

A Generational Dream

:You might say that flying has always been in his blood. As a child, Paul Harris would spend long hours watching the birds in flight. He knew that someday he would join them in the air. He got his first glider at age 13 and would hike it up small hills just for the thrill of floating for a few seconds several feet off the ground.

It wasn’t until he was in his 20s, married with one young son, that his dream really took flight. He took hang gliding lessons and learned to fly at Ed R. Levin while his wife and son watched from the landing zone. His son Josh would sit atop the fence post and watch the gliders as they soared high above and came in for a landing. His dad’s love of flying had been passed on to him. He knew that one day he too would fly with the birds.

Through the years, Paul enjoyed flying often and earned an H3 rating. Then life got busy, time went by, and Joshua grew up. One day while Paul was recovering from shoulder surgery, Joshua, now in his 30s, walked into the house and announced to his dad that he had just signed up for hang gliding lessons. “I’m going to learn to fly, and I’m going to get my H4 rating before you do,” Joshua said.

The challenge had been set, and as Joshua took to the skies, it was now Paul’s turn to watch from the landing zone as his son quickly earned his H3 and soared overhead. He was so proud (and maybe just a little jealous) of his son.

Just a few weeks later, Paul, not fully healed from surgery, was back in the air and quickly earned his H4. Josh was soon to catch up and got his H4 while flying at McClure with his dad.

With H4s under their belts, they could now realize their dream to fly Mission Peak, a Bay Area site with beautiful mountains, easy access to launch, and consistent lift. Top landing was something that Paul, who had been flying now for 30 years, had always wanted to do and was feasible from Mission.

The weather was perfect the day they drove to Mission Peak, a bright sky filled with puffy cumulus clouds, perfect lift conditions. Side by side they set up their gliders. Josh took to the air first with his dad right on his tail. They flew. Up with the clouds, up with the birds, soaring together, chasing thermals, chasing each other, laughing, smiling, at peace, father and son. They top landed that day. They packed up their gliders and laughed and talked all the way home.

Later that evening, they watched the days’ footage on the movie screen in their home theatre. As they laughed and reminisced about their adventure, Oliver, age five, Joshua’s son, Paul’s grandson, watched intently. He, like his dad before him, had been spending time at the landing zone watching his father learn to fly. Now, sitting between his dad and his grandpa, he spoke up, “I’m going to fly with you guys someday. But I have to get bigger first because I’m just a boy.”