Rafts and yachts, just life

I met a man who had massive, luxurious, beautiful yacht I had never seen before and I could not help but marvel. I stopped to stare and enjoy its beauty and as I admired and envied him to have such a yacht, he told me to come sit next to him and he began to tell me a story. "I was born and given a raft. I did not even know what a raft was, how it works or what I was supposed to do with it, but with time I realized I was surrounded by people who knew all answers to these questions and they taught me some raft lessons. They helped me to find branches which I could use to move the raft forward and showed me how steering the raft could work well for me. I was taught that I could not remain in that same raft with time as the length of my journey was unknown and so were the waters to be charted with the possibility of pirates being clearly apparent. I was told it may be a short or very prolonged trip I was taking, and the seas could be as calm as a cradled child or as vicious and unrelenting as a runaway hurricane, so I had to make the most of the journey by preparing for the worst while enjoying the best.

I had to improve on my raft if I was to become better poised to enjoy my ride. Indeed as I rowed I started to see other people slowly emerge from the shadows with all sorts of boats, dinghies, cruise ships, yachts you name it. I wondered how I would get to where they were with this underdeveloped, ugly little raft I had. I had no idea the stories I would hear from those I came across. Some had been born into owning massive luxurious boats, others once had big boats but lost them along the way and started rebuilding new ones. Others still had started off with a raft like me and developed it to a cruise ship, an ice breaker and even aircraft carriers. So I began the journey on the raft and started to learn the skills needed to maneuver the seas while building a bigger boat. I ran aground quite often, crushing into icebergs which seemed harmless from the surface, losing everything in the process, only to get up, get over it and get going. Do not see this yacht here only, but see the story behind this yacht as well. It has not come easy, nor cheap.

The story of this yacht is a story of gain and loss, failure and victory. It is a story of despair and hope, joy and pain, groaning and laughter. The one thing I have held onto no matter what I have lost, is hope. Without hope I would not be where I am today" A tear trickled down his wrinkled cheek as he said this reminding me of the wisdom in his words. "You will see people with all sorts of boats as you journey along young man, but keep your eyes on your boat and your course, while acknowledging the achievements of others. When u admire my yacht, also admire with it my courage, strength, vision and hardwork. Oh yes remember my opportunity costs, that which I gave up to have this yacht. Do not wish their boats were yours nor hate the fact that they have better boats than you. Their story is probably more painful than yours and maybe they are better qualified to handle the boat they own than you are. Be content with your raft at any point in time, and never lose sight of the kind of boat you want for yourself in the future. Who knows, one day you could just be the owner of this yacht if you master your vision well enough. Everyone gets a raft or yacht of some sort to start off with. Develop your own raft and preserve your yacht the best way you can. It is within your hands to do it".

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