Jack and his Boats

A story about resilience and never giving up. By James Adams

I was once taught a very important life lesson — one that i'll never forget. I want to bring it to life using a fictional story about a boy and his passion for building boats.

Jack is a sailor who enjoys building his own boats and taking to the seas.

The very first time Jack took his boat out to sea, all was well. The sun was shining and the water was glistening from the reflection. Jack even decided to catch some fish for his evening supper.

The very next day, Jack decided to take his boat out again. This time it was very different. A vicious storm was waiting for Jack and the boat suddenly started to sway from side to side. It didn't take long for wood to start breaking off, and even parts of the mast flew away. Jack’s main priority was to get back to land safety which, thankfully, he did.

Jack discovered that the boat was okay for calm weather but not sturdy enough to withstand storms.

Life is full of storms and Jack needs to be prepared for them.

So Jack went to work to build a stronger boat based on his experiences of the last storm. He was confident that his new boat would withstand any kind of adverse weather.

During his next voyage, Jack was greeted with another storm that the boat was able to withstand — initially — however, the winds suddenly became much more aggressive and parts of the boat started to break off.

Jack hurried back to land. He sat down and examined why his boat could not withstand this particular storm. He realised that it needed to be more wind resistant, therefore, he built a brand-new boat using a different type of wood.

Once again, Jack took his boat out to sea. To his amazement, there were no storms or winds this time.

However, shortly into his voyage, Jack heard a loud thud at the bottom of his boat.

Jack soon realised that a large whale, the size of Moby Dick, had crashed into the bottom of the boat and penetrated it. Jack knew that he wouldn't be able to make it back to land but fortunately was saved by a nearby fishing vessel.

Jack was devastated that yet another one of his carefully crafted boats was destroyed by the unpredictable seas.

Jack decided to build a new boat that included all of the previous modifications and a lifeboat – just in case. And so, Jack completed his new boat that could withstand storms, high winds — and equipped with a lifeboat, should he need to rescue himself.

The following week, Jack entered a national sailing competition against some of the finest sailors in the land.

To his delight, Jack’s boat was the only one standing after a surge of high winds disrupted the race and destroyed all of the other boats. Jack was crowned the winner.

So what is the significance of this story?

Well let’s say that Jack’s boat represents our wellbeing and the unpredictability of the sea represents life’s obstacles. When life is great, our minds and bodies are healthy and curious.

When bad times hit, things can go south very quickly. Life is full of ups and downs and it’s important that we are physically and mentally prepared for the downs. Life has a very interesting way of putting us to the test — time and time again.

Personally, I believe that life does this to make us stronger – strong enough to keep striving towards our goals without being blown off course by obstacles that will inevitably meet us along the way.

Jack building a better boat each time is a symbolic representation of falling down and becoming stronger next time round.

When the time does come to shine, there will be nothing standing in our way.