Today, I was reading The Sprit of Sailing while sipping on a Starbuck’s coffee in the living room. This is a very excellent book that Scott & Mandi gave me for Christmas. It combines two favorites of mine, sailing and photography. The pictures are very powerful and moving. In this one I can just feel the boat surging through the waves and gaining speed. Makes me look forward to doing more sailing this summer. I really enjoyed this book and cherish it very much. Michael Kahn combines the inspirational sailing photography and with equally inspiring quotes from many famous writers. My first favorite is on page 60 where he quotes Mark Twain.
“Twenty years from now, you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbour. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream Discover.”
It may be a little early for New Years resolutions, but this describes the way I hope to live my life in the coming years. Taking more chances, trying new things, and living life to the fullest. I hope you will too. My second favorite quote in the books is by Oliver Wendell Holmes.
“I find the great thing in this world is not so much where we stand, as in what direction we are moving; to reach the port of heaven, we must sail sometimes with the wind, and sometimes against it – but we must sail, and not drift, not lie at anchor.”
What a powerful thought, that it’s not so much where we are right now, but that our path is set correctly and that we’re moving forward on that path regardless if it’s easy (with the wind) or more difficult (against it). Never stay at anchor, it’s hard to get anywhere that way.