B is for BALLOON

It seemed like a good idea at the time. Partly scientific and mostly good fun. Along with her primary four class, wife had decided to have a balloon launch and see how far the balloons could travel. There was much to prepare in advance. The children had to learn why just blowing up balloons with a pump or with our own air would be likely to be less successful than filling them with Helium which was lighter than air and would not only ensure a good take-off but would be likely to help the balloons travel so much further. The children had to agree what to write on labels that would be attached to the balloons and how they might reward the contact from the greatest distance away. For a class of around twenty five it was a huge, exciting event and as the day drew nearer the feeling of anticipation grew. Labels were written, informing anyone who found the balloon, where it had been released and requesting them to contact the school by telephone.

On the day, excitement among the primary fours was at fever pitch and they all paraded out into the playground in the early afternoon and waited excitedly. A cylinder of helium arrived on time and a mouthful or two of this strange gas produced unusual squeaking voices that kept them amused while the balloons were inflated and labels attached. When all was ready, a quick countdown and the helium filled pieces of plastic / rubber were off and into the sky, exiting in a southerly direction. Soon, apart from one or two that didn't make it beyond the first hurdle and got stuck in the tall trees around the perimeter, they were all beyond the scope of the naked eye and heading off on their holidays. With nothing to see, the initial excitement died down but the anticipation of a contact took over. And we didn't have to wait long. Later that afternoon, a brief phone call from Kilkeel assured us that at least some of the balloons had already reached the coast. If they continued to move in this south-west direction, the rest of the United Kingdom was well within their reach, providing the Irish Sea did not claim them. The next day, a second phone call from Aberystwyth in Wales showed the speed of the movement and within another day or two a call from the south of England brought even greater encouragement. My wife more than a little pleased, especially since France didn't seem out of the question. And when she answered the phone to a lady later that week and to be greeted by 'Bonjour madam', I could see her visibly quiver with excitement. I know I shouldn't have done, but it seemed too good an opportunity to miss and after all, the French teacher at my previous school in County Down was keen to help out. I don't know what French sounds like with a Kilkeel accent but I guess wife never picked up on the nuances, such was her delight at hearing another speak a language that she spoke fluently herself. It was a triumph of sorts that a balloon could have reached a country that had a fond place in her heart and I hadn't the heart to shatter her dream. But I did! Anyway, she's still with me and to be fair, she's got her own back on many occasions.

A few years ago, we repeated the whole experiment, but with a few minor alterations, mainly me promising to be good this time. But we also had each balloon sponsored by parents and friends and instead of just one class, we had balloons for the whole school, about one hundred and sixty. They were launched on our parents' evening in late June to the sound of the orchestral film score from 2001, A Space Odyssey playing in the background. And what a sight and sound it was as the mass of colours floated beyond the trees, over the golf course and into the space beyond the clouds, a fitting climax to the evening.

I often wonder how the disciples felt as they stood with Jesus just before He left them to return to His Father in Heaven. Luke tells us in the first chapter of Acts the 'he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.' He goes on to remark that 'they were looking intently up into the sky as he was going.' What a sight that must have been, to see the man they had known for just a short time but who had risen from the grave and had the marks to prove it, rise into the sky and be gone. But that's where any similarity with pour experiments ends for two angels reminded the disciples that 'This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.'

If you or I had been there with them, I'm sure we would have been shocked by the sight of Him going. But how shocked will you be when He returns?