The Dream

The Dream

There once were two men who both had a dream - to sail around the world.
With his face to the wind, his hand on the tiller, sails billowing and unfurled.
The excitement to master his craft, that it obey his every command...
To plot with a straight sure course, to control with a steady hand.

Now both had been taught by a master, each master had known his craft well.
Both masters equally knowledgeable, both had battled the ocean's swell.
Well qualified were they to speak of the dangers that might lie ahead.
Many an hour was spent at their feet, absorbing all that was said.

At last came the day...ready to sail! Filled with great expectation!
As the shoreline faded from view, they cried out in jubilation.

The sky was clear, the breeze to their backs, they sailed with joyous delight.
Feet firmly planted on the fresh new decks, not a sign of a storm cloud in sight.
A sense of freedom filled their souls, "How marvelous to be free!
Nothing quite like it in all the world...just the man against the sea!"

And so their journeys went, confidence growing each day,
"Wonder why the master had warned us so often." was all that they could say.
But during the night, a fierce storm arose, their crafts rising then dipping low.
The first man ran to his instruments, for his master had said they would know.

But his instruments were spinning wildly! He could scarcely read them at all!
Panic gripped his soul when his craft was seized by a squall.
His master had warned him all right, assuring him he could not fail.
"Just keep calm with your eye on the instruments...thru them you will prevail."

But soon despair overcame him and he knew not where to turn.
Forlornly looking about...there was nothing more to learn.
He battled the best he could, but Defeat became his master
As he eyed his scattered instruments which were spinning wildly faster.

He clung to the mast, gave up all hope, for there was nothing more he could do.
When the storm subsided, he set sail for home, his dream broken and fallen through.

Now the other man's journey was similar, the same feeling of freedom and adventure.
Thinking how great was the dream, how worthwhile his time of indenture.
Once more a great storm arose, his instruments scattered and thrown,
And he thought of his master's words..."At times, you will stand all alone.

When the storms arise, My son," He had said in His quiet voice,
"You will stand all alone with no one to help, for each man must make his own choice.
For the waves must obey their own rhythm, so you must learn from their rhythm, My son.
It is foolish to battle what obeys its own law, so study to see how it's done.

"Watch as they rise and they fall, then you rise and fall as you're led.
Try not to outwit the law of the sea, but learn from its rhythm instead.
For all things must follow their course, to think other is the folly of man.
To do battle is to claim you are master, as though control comes from your own hand.

"So learn from the storms, My son, and Wisdom will grow in your heart.
Understand the ways of the sea, that you are but one small part.
Be grateful for each lesson learned. Only then can you truly be free."
And so spoke the Master, the One who knew all, The One who said, "Come follow Me."

When the storm subsided. the sea calm once more, he sailed on to fulfill his dream.
"What a wonderful lesson I have learned from the seas! The seas and I were a team!...
They taught me to learn their ways, it was just as The Teacher had said...
The storms of life are not meant to defeat, but to overcome instead!"

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