April 1, 2002
Reflections On The Water
“I had to judge where I was headed from where I had been, an acquired perception which has served me well – for the goals of my life, and especially my work, haven’t always been visible points of light on a shore the looms in front of me. They are fixed in my imagination, shrouded and indistinct, and I detect them best when my eyes are closed. All too often I am forced to move toward them backward, like a boy in a rowboat, guiding myself by a cultivated inner sense of direction which tells me I’m on course, tending toward the place I want to be.”
From
First You Have To Row A Little Boat by Richard Bode (1)
We traveled to Chamberlain,
South Dakota this past week to spend the Easter holiday with my wife’s
grandmother. My wife’s sister and
family, her mother and a nephew made the trip over as well from Wyoming.
My brother-in-law pulled his boat behind so we could enjoy a little
fishing on the Missouri River.
On Saturday, what turned out to
be the coldest day of our stay, the men folk launched the boat for a day of
fishing amid the wind and cold. Although
I looked forward to being on the water, I decided not to fish, allowing my son,
his uncle, and cousin to catch the bounty for the evening dinner.
I chose to use the time to take in the scenery, read a bit, and simply
‘be’ in the moment.
It turned out to be a much
colder day than I had anticipated and after reading only the preface and the
first chapter of a new book, I succumbed to the cold and spent the remainder of
the day huddled to keep warm. During
the day I remembered a small book I had read several years ago written by
Richard Bode about his early experiences learning to sail and the life lessons
it had taught him. Although not
being a sailor myself, nor being in a rowboat, I found his reflections becoming
my own.
We found a cove that offered a
slight reprieve from the wind and a promising bottom contouring for attracting
the walleye fish my brother-in-law was seeking. For several hours we would let the boat drift through the
fishing area, then motor back to where we started.
As the boat drifted, it had a calming effect with the sound of water
gently lapping against the sides of the boat as it gently rocked in rhythm with
the waves. Like the boat, I too
began to allow my thoughts to drift about where I had been and where I was
going.
Bode contends that as we move
forward in life we have the ability to develop an inner sense of direction that
can be used to keep us on the course we have set for our lives.
It is not seeing what riches we have amassed or the way we look on the
outside that is our guide or benchmark, but the intangibles that we feel.
If you have ever rowed a small
boat before to a specific destination, you can more easily identify with his
metaphor. With your back facing the
direction you are headed and your front looking at where you have been, you
sense or feel the adjustments that are needed to stay the course.
So it is with the course your soul would have you take.
Use the quiet time in your life as an opportunity to reflect on where you
have been compared to your true course, and then use your inner sense of
direction to make needed adjustments.
With respect, acceptance, and love,
Richard
©
Richard D. Olson and Awaken The Soul, 2002; Edited by Janice E. Olson
(1)
First You Have To Row A Little Boat: Reflections on Life & Living
by Richard Bode; Copyright 1993; Warner Books, Inc.