“Life is a shipwreck, but we must not forget to sing in the lifeboats.” (Voltaire 1694-1778)
There is no guarantee that life will be smooth sailing. In fact, it’s almost guaranteed that life will present us with numerous storms that leave us adrift in the waves and wind. In the midst of the storm, there is hope, there is singing in the lifeboats.
I look at the picture at the top of this post and I think about all the voyages and excursions that each of the boats pictured have endured. But now, the wood rots, the steel rusts, anything of value has been stripped away and salvaged.
Each ship has a record of its work life – a log describing various components of the trip, the cargo, and the disposition of the jobs undertaken. If we could sneak a look at the ship’s log, we would be amazed at the encounters each of the ships above survived.
My brother bought a new sailboat and needed to sail it down the Chesapeake Bay from the marina that sold him the boat to a new mooring in a more accessible part of the bay. He asked if I could join him in the cruise down the Bay. The day began bright and sunny with a fair wind blowing from the west. Although it was early in the morning, I presented my brother with a bottle of champagne to christen the boat and provide us both with a celebratory drink. It was soon after our libation that we noticed the storm clouds developing.
Behind us and getting closer were unmistakable storm clouds. Within an hour the storm came over us and the shallow Chesapeake Bay was alive with 6-8 foot waves. The marine radio instructed all small craft to immediately put into a safe place. We were undaunted and continued on our way. Sometimes arrogance or a false sense of our abilities gets the best of us.
The storm overwhelmed us. We were in danger. My brother, worried about his new sailboat, was oblivious to the severity of the weather. That left me at the wheel of the sailboat to navigate through the storm. I started to sing. I knew that if I followed the navigational aids without deviation, the course we had set would lead us out of the storm to safety.
The storm lasted for hours. Eventually, the sailboat was safe, we were moored at the new marina. We had beaten a bad storm. We had hope in the soundness of the sailboat, confidence in our sailing skills, and at day’s end, the honesty to admit that we had been foolish and arrogant.
The log entry for that trip was written simply. My brother scribbled on page one – “we endured a storm, never losing hope, but realizing our mortality. Even in the midst of the waves and wind, we never gave up on each other, my brother and I, and we finally tied up humbled and thankful.”
In our lives we will encounter storms. Hopefully, at those times, we will have someone there with us to endure and to encourage us as we fight back against the wind and waves. The winds will cease, the waves will subside, the rain will stop, the sun will shine. There is always life after the storm no matter where we land.
One of the lessons we learned that day was in terms of noble purposes – never leave someone alone in their distress. Do all you are capable of to comfort those in dire circumstances. Sing in the lifeboats my friends.
