The lesson of the little yellow trimaran #53

Hey all, happy Friday.

You’ve probably heard of the quote by John A. Shedd…

"A ship in harbour is safe, but that is not what ships are built for."

And you probably know what it relates to.

In short, it’s trying you inspire you to get out of your comfort zone, try new things - be brave.

Or at least, don’t live in fear.

Marcus Aurelius says something more verbose, but similar…

“At dawn, when you have trouble getting out of bed, tell yourself: “I have to go to work — as a human being. What do I have to complain of, if I’m going to do what I was born for — the things I was brought into the world to do? Or is this what I was created for? To huddle under the blankets and stay warm?”

Both are saying - out there and do the things you were destined to do.

But have you ever wondered what happens if you don’t? What happens if you stay in your safe harbour?

Let me explain using a real example of a ship that was left in a harbour too long.

These two boats are in Skerries, County Dublin. They are moored on swing moorings and are protected by natural coastline and a harbour wall, as shown below.

In this photo you can see that the harbour to the right is significantly protected from the elements seen on the left hand side of the image.

I’ve visited Skerries weekly for 5 years and never seen anyone sail those boats.

Earlier this year the yellow boat sank.

They have managed to recover it so now it still floats, but it is damaged - and it would be costly to repair.

The reason it sank?

Neglect.

Minor maintenance wasn’t carried out.

Minor repairs were not spotted.

To be specific - the washboard (a piece of wood which covers the hatch) fell off and was never replaced. The boat took on some water, then some more, and some more. Until the weight of the water overwhelmed its buoyancy.

All of which would have been taken care of if it had been sailed.

The other boat in the back? It’s not in much better condition. It just hasn’t sank, yet!

When I first saw the yellow boat I was fascinated by it.

It’s a trimaran, it has 3 hulls. This makes it a very stable and safe boat.

When visiting Skerries I was always hoping to bump into the owner to ask about it, even to ask if it was for sale.

Now, sadly it holds very little value.

Is this what I was created for?

Going back to what Marcus Aurelius said - is this what I was created for?

Sometimes we can treat ourselves like the little yellow boat.

Sometimes we want to avoid the adventures.

Sometimes we can’t be bothered to do the things we know are good for us.

Sometimes we want to stay in our safe place. To stay in our harbour.

But, is this what I was created for?

If that little yellow trimaran had been sailed regular, it would have had to have been maintained.

The same is true for us all.

And, as Makenna Berry states, “adverse experiences offer opportunities to gain strength to tackle our future challenges”.

So ask yourself daily - is this what I was created for?

Fin.

And just like this, we’re done with this weeks newsletter.

Hope you have a great weekend.

Best wishes, John