People have typically seen sailing as just a recreational sport. Their views typically support the notion that sailing holds no real life value and is just used as a means of transportation or a way to relax in the afternoons. These ideas should be reassessed considering sailing is capable of teaching people countless number of valuable lessons. I realized the potential of sailing through a two week summer camp I had attended. Within these two weeks we took multiple test to determine our skill level in order to hopefully graduate onto the higher level course. I quickly became involved with a small group of kids who all shared a passion for sailing. Though our camp included a variety of local cities, it only consisted of roughly thirty …show more content…
The scorching temperature was made bearable by the cool mist rising from the waters below. I had been placed on a boat with a close friend Nick, and we were instructed to meet the counselor in the middle of the lake for our task. As we floated across the water, anxiously awaiting our final test. We sat quietly with only the rhythmic sounds of the lapping of the waves clashing against the bow to ease our racing hearts. We approached our instructor as she smiled mischievously. We knew this task was made to challenge us beyond what we have been taught. She informed us that our objective was to sail towards the last boat docked in the marina before the sun goes down. Nick and I made eye contact, perplexed by the seemingly simple and straightforward …show more content…
Sailing is often similar to life in a sense that you cannot always directly travel to your destination or desired goal. Within the event, I was required to sail off course in order to reach my destination. This has helped me with larger projects in my life, teaching me how to improvise with what I have. Sailing is atypical compared to other machines used to transport. In sailing one must learn to navigate their way in different means. Moreover, this has helped me learn how to think outside the box and many of my problems have various facets, one typically being easier than another. Each day on the water is different than the day before, therefore I had to adapt every day to the new environment. Through my experience sailing with other people I have learned that one must learn to rely on others to do their part of the job. While sailing with Nick I had to trust that he could man the Jib and bail out water by himself. Through my years of sailing I was offered an opportunity to be a volunteer at the same camp I had attended. This has enabled me to compose similar events that seem trivial, but can teach the children copious amounts of lessons. As for the community, which I am grateful to be apart of, we have all learned many similar lessons from sailing. We often times gather and share our experiences and lessons we have
The Boys in the Boat has a shared dream of winning gold in the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, but not just the gold, it is the overall satisfaction of achieving something greater than ever imagined. Many of these boys
“Two roads diverged in a wood and I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.” At some point in life one is faced with a decision which will define the future, but only time will tell whether or not the choice was right or wrong. The Boat by Alistair MacLeod demonstrates that an individual should make their own decisions in life, be open to new experiences and changes, and that there is no way to obtain something, without sacrificing something else.
...r even the risk of one’s life to reach, like those in the little dingney. The sea is the world- the jungle- we humans live, and everybody starts his/ her lifelong journey in the open boat, independent yet luckily to have a small community. The Correspondent experiences the journey, witnesses the change and speaks every grown- up man’s voice, and certainly the voices of Stephen Crane and Naturalism. Nature is detached and life is tough, so all we can do is to fight on our own and with our community, give up false hopes and accept deterministic moments. Hence, "The Open Boat" exceeds the scope of Naturalism and harmoniously combines individuality and community: the two central themes in American society.
As a freshman, I was timid and had little to no confidence. When I went to my first drill practice, I felt like I was in my element. Everyone there wanted to be there, they all joined NJROTC because they wanted to. After attending many drill practices, and NJROTC events, I started to come out of my shell. Instead of staying quiet in class, I voiced my opinions more often and sometimes cracked a joke here and there. Then came our first drill competition, where I was the freshman drill squad’s squad leader. At the end of the day we won first place. This taste of victory showed me how a little self confidence can go a long way. Sophomore year went even better. My friend group expanded, as I met more people through NJROTC. Every drill practice became so much more enjoyable, because I found out that I was actually enjoying what I was doing, because the people around me were as well. I became so confident with myself, and more and more people started to look up to me and admire me for how much I had grown. At the end of my sophomore year, I went to Area Four Leadership Academy/Sail Training for two weeks, which was a life changing experience for me. I met cadets from all over my area, and spent every waking moment with the same 35 other cadets who shared the same pas...
I am a runner. I was selected to be a cross country captain for my senior year and I had set myself a realistic goal of being one of the top five finishers at the state meet in the fall. I never had the thought that I could not do it; I knew I was going to be up there with the best. When the state meet came and I traveled with the team as captain, that race became one of the most memorable of my cross country career but not for the reasons I expected.
The most meaningful and challenging experiences in my life have been through sports and the 4-H club. They have instilled the values of perseverance, confidence, and teamwork within me. I feel that my peers and others could learn valuable life lessons through participating in these organizations. They are not just clubs, but a guiding light for life. For example in sports I have had the opportunity to play on both losing and winning teams. This has given me a different perspective of looking at things. I now realize that even if you fail or lose that is no reason to give up, you still have to get right back up. Just realize your mistakes and errors. Then come back the next time, mentally and physically, ready to meet the challenge. To often in life youth and adults alike fail at something and automatically think that they cannot do it, and give up. Instead of just pushing themselves to run another lap, lift another set, study for another hour, or learn another theorem. Imagine a world if the early American settlers had given in to the British, if the North had given in to the South after the first loss of the civil war, or if Michael Jordan had given up after being cut from the team in high school. People just need to learn to have perseverance and believe in themselves. 4-H has been a series of stepping-stones for me. When I first started out at age four I was shy and afraid to do things that I had not done before, but now I have blossomed into a confident and outgoing young man. I no longer fear getting up in front of large groups and speaking because of the experiences I've had in public speaking events. In addition, 4-H has given me the chance to develop myself as a leader. Over the years I have held various leadership positions on the club, county, and district levels. Also, 4-H has given me the chance to go into the community and help people by leading youth in workshops, assisting the handicap and elderly, and also learn from what others have to teach. In both of these organizations I learned the need for teamwork. For example last year my football team went 0-11 and the main reason because of that was we were not a team.
The triumphant Olympians, in “The Boys in the Boat,” became the national heroes and felt proud of themselves in rest of their lives. Although there was a Great Depression and boys had economic difficulties and other living obstacles, eight rowers continued to win and championed in the 1936 Olympic games in Germany. According to Al Ulbrickson and his eight rowers, receiving praises, respects, and awards from what they earned from putting so much effort make them proud of themselves but they cannot be too arrogant and self-satisfied. Otherwise, they will feel too conceited and slack off from which will make them to lose.
“The Boat”, narrated by a Mid-western university professor, Alistar MacLeod, is a short story concerning a family and their different perspectives on freedom vs. tradition. The mother pushes the son to embrace more of a traditional lifestyle by taking over the fathers fishing business, while on the other hand the father pushes the son to live more autonomously in an unconstrained manner. “The Boat” focuses on the father and how his personality influences the son’s choice on how to live and how to make decisions that will ultimately affect his life. In Alistair MacLeod’s, “The Boat”, MacLeod suggest that although dreams and desires give people purpose, the nobility of accepting a life of discontentment out weighs the selfishness of following ones own true desires. In the story, the father is obligated to provide for his family as well as to continue the fishing tradition that was inherited from his own father. The mother emphasizes the boat and it’s significance when she consistently asked the father “ How did things go in the boat today” since tradition was paramount to the mother. H...
“A ship in the harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are built for.” A wise quote from John A. Shedd. A boat is secure inside the harbor, but it is useless. Inside a harbor, a boat can’t traverse oceans, set wars in motion, or discover new lands. Figuratively, we, the people, are the ships, and our safe haven is our comfort zone. Without reaching out of your comfort zone, you can’t conquer your world. You can’t make a difference. You need take a risk. Leave your safe haven and explore.
Alistair Macleod’s “The Boat” is a tale of sacrifice, and of silent struggle. A parent’s sacrifice not only of their hopes and dreams, but of their life. The struggle of a marriage which sees two polar opposites raising a family during an era of reimagining. A husband embodying change and hope, while making great sacrifice; a wife gripped in fear of the unknown and battling with the idea of losing everything she has ever had. The passage cited above strongly presents these themes through its content
No Bricks and No Temples: Coping with Crisis in “The Open Boat” Stephen Crane’s story “The Open Boat” concerns four people who are trying to reach land after surviving a shipwreck off the Florida coast. During the course of the story, they face dangers that are real physical threats, but they also have to deal with trying to make sense of their situation. The characters in this story cope with their struggles in two ways: individually, they each imagine that Nature, or Fate, or God, is behind their experiences, which allows them to blame some outside force for their struggle, and together, they form a bond of friendship that helps them keep their spirits up. . In “Becoming Interpreters: The Importance of Tone in ‘The Open Boat,’” Gregory Schirmer states that “‘The Open Boat has at its center two quite different views of man: as a helpless and insignificant being adrift in a universe that is wholly indifferent to him and his ambitions, and on the other hand, as part of a brotherhood that binds man to man in the face of that indifferent universe” (222).
It is now 3:00 pm and I am tired of sailing but I have to keep pushing. I am having so much fun. It is now 5:00 pm and I?m rushing hoping I will get finish early I can see the land and I?m almost there. All I have to do is reach the land. I?m there finally all sweaty and wet.
It wasn't a question of whether one loved or hated sailing-it was more a matter of whether one was, or was not, a sailor at heart. I think that's what Fred knew and what he was trying to say. And on a day which most would consider far from ideal for sailing, he helped me discover that I was a sailor.
Ships are a huge part of the story. Hal’s ship (The Heron) is his pride and joy, and the entire culture of Skandia, which is heavily based on Vikings, is a sea-based community. Boys that go through Brotherband training often join the same crews and spend years raiding, sailing, and relaxing together, and the ships are a central part to this. On chapter six, Hal says, “he exulted in the feeling of being underway, at the helm [steering platform] of his own ship”. This basically describes the Skandian love for ships and sailing.
Thinking of surfing brought me to think about my brother who is a surfer. I reminisced about the times he and I had sat quietly in the ocean waiting to see that perfect bump in the horizon. He taught me a great lesson in surfing; you don’t always have to pick the first option because there are more opportunities to