Soaring Dreams —空高く舞い上がる夢—

“Don’t just sit out there in your lawn chair,” someone might admonish you.  “When are you going to do something to make your dreams actually come true?” 

Maybe you can make your dreams come true whilst sitting in your lawn chair.  That’s what Larry Walters did back in 1982. 

Larry was a truck driver who had wanted to be a pilot.  But he was not allowed to fly a plane due to his poor eyesight.  So he hatched an incredible plan to experience flight by tying 42 helium filled balloons to a piece of garden furniture.  He carried a gun and planned to descend by shooting the balloons one by one and drifting gently to the ground. 

Larry’s flight was a success.  If anything, it succeeded a little too well.  His altitude rose more than he had expected – to around 16,000 feet.  His unusual flying contraption was spotted and reported by two plane pilots, and he drifted above the approach to LAX airport in Los Angeles. 

After shooting seven of the balloons, Larry accidentally dropped his gun.  Fortunately, the helium began to escape from the balloons and Larry did drift to the ground safely.  He briefly became a media sensation in America, as well as something of a laughing stock.  He lived for another 11 years, before seemingly dying by suicide. 

There is a new musical about Larry’s life, called “42 Balloons”.  Instead of treating him as a laughing stock, the musical treats him as a hero.  He may have been eccentric and rash, but at least he had the courage to pursue his dreams.

 

Vocabulary:

to admonish someone – to strongly tell off or criticise someone

[eg., My boss admonished me for coming to work in sneakers instead of business shoes.]

to hatch a plan – to create or decide upon a plan, especially a secret or cunning one

[eg., The rebels hatched a plan to attack the government forces when they were not expecting it.]

a contraption – a machine or device that seems strange or unnecessarily complicated

[eg., Leonardo Da Vinci came up with drawings of a flying contraption, which looks a little like a helicopter.]

a laughing stock – a person or thing subjected to general mockery or ridicule

[eg., I thought it was a fancy dress party and came dressed as a monster.  Unfortunately, everyone else was in regular clothes.  I became a laughing stock.]