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Lessons from an old man

I remember watching the old man in the sea with my dad. The movie was about an old man and a big fish. The old man (played by Spencer Tracy) set out to prove to himself and to everyone else, that even though he was old, he wasn’t weak, he wasn’t washed up and he could still land the big one. All he needed was one day and this was that day. 

Hook line and splinters


How long the day and how long the fight would last, he had no idea.  The game was tug of war and war it was. The old man skillfully played the fish reeling in the slack but ready with the drag when he could feel the beast burst through the surface of sea.  His calloused hands now bloodied from hours of fighting, were wrapped with shreds of a discarded sweat-stained shirt, meant to be a bandage and did nothing to stop the pain, only to slow the bleeding. How many hours had gone by it didn’t matter.  Neither one surrendered, knowing well that weakness awakens the sharks.  The night came and the fight was over. The old man thanked the fish for fighting so hard and felt sorry for it at the same time. 

Surrender isn't always sweet


Too big and too heavy to put in the boat, it was tied down to the side of it.  He could see the lights shoreline and headed home. But the night wasn’t over neither was his battle. One fin slithered by than two, suddenly the water erupted into a frenzy. I remember feeling exhausted watching the shark’s taring away at his trophy and seeing my dad fighting back the tears saying, "You know son, this story is about life" All I could see (being a kid ) was a skeleton. My father seen much more. He was now the old man. He had lived his life. He had seen dreams come and go but he knew it was all about the journey not about the prize. Sometimes that journey clings to the side of a boat a mere skeleton of what we hoped we could protect, left to the imagination, a big beautiful fish.

What did the old man teach me? 


He wanted his moment. He was seeking justification and appreciation but this was a baited hook. He was both fish and fisherman. Trying not to get fooled and hoping to fool at the same time. There are many fish swimming in the sea of contradiction and many are hooked because of it.  Life is not a be all end all wall mounted trophy, it's an adventure. I am older now but I think I'm beginning to see the hidden truth in the words of the old man.

Climb aboard the ocean awaits and don't rock the boat. 

 


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