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Showing posts from March, 2026

To fly, we must lose the baggage: mortification and the spiritual life

 A while ago, my boys were watching a show on YouTube called Science Max . In the episode they were enjoying, they were making paper aeroplanes and then “maxing them out.” What caught my attention was that they used the design based on the paper aeroplane that holds the Guinness World Record for the longest flight. Watch clip here The man behind that record did not simply sit down one afternoon and happen to fold the perfect plane. He had always loved folding paper aeroplanes, but then spent about ten years studying the ancient Japanese art of origami. Through that discipline, he learnt techniques he could bring back into the world of paper folding, and eventually used them to build an aeroplane capable of enduring a remarkably long flight. What fascinated me is that even a paper aeroplane is not as simple as it looks. If it dips, the flaps need adjusting. If it leans, the balance is off. Even something so light requires precision, discipline and patience if it is going to fly wel...