Peanut Butter Wisdom: A Captain's Doctrine

Peanut Butter Wisdom

Captain Roger was at his prime, a middle aged healthy man with a promising career. He drifted off to his humble past as he stared out of the silver sea by the ship’s window, the blaze of the sun illuminates the bridge as he started to reminisce. Class has just finished, the dull and tedious atmosphere of the classroom was broken by the school bell. He picked up his back pack he had hung over the back of his chair and flung one sling to his shoulder as he bolts out of the hallway. It was just fifteen feet away from the exit and he can smell the moist air of the summer breeze. “At last!” Roger breaths in as he sniffs the scent of what he feels as freedom after a period of science and mathematics.

“Roger over here!” One of his friends called to him.

Roger dashes in throwing his backpack to the lawn grass to join his friends in a game of football.

After a quick game, Roger started to crave for ice cones. As he reached his hand in his pocket, he notices his wallet missing. A feeling of despair engulfed Roger as quick as burning paper.

“Looking for this Roger?”

Roger turned around and saw his Science teacher, Vicky.

“Yes! Wow that sure got my hard beating Ms.Vicky!” Roger giggled as he yanks his wallet off and starts kissing it.

“Inside that very wallet contains your parent’s sacrifices Roger, be careful next time.”

Vicky opened her hand bag and offered Roger a peanut butter sandwich wrapped perfectly in purple tissue.

“Thanks Ms.Vicky!” Roger said as he starts to tear the soft paper bit by bit and sank his teeth into the nutty goodness he was just offered. Roger was enjoying every bite and decided to sit in the bench with her teacher.

“I want you to put in heart what I’m about to say Roger.” Vicky smiled as she turned her focus on the boy munching heavily beside her.

“People don’t make money by staring out of windows.”

Suddenly, a midst the buttery goodness and tangy grape jelly, a midst the playful atmosphere and the orchestra of children’s shouts and laughter, Roger found the words striked his heart and soul. Did Roger understand what it meant? Perhaps not yet, but the phrase he heard that very day became the foundation of his achieved success.

“I’ll never forget what she said Josh.” Roger melodramatically said to me as he drifts back to the present.

“But, aren’t you..?” I asked, confused.

“Yes, I work as an offshore vessel Captain, and what do we mostly do?”

“Stare.. out of… windows?” I erped.

Captain Roger started to fix his gaze on me with the biggest grin that made me want to laugh. Well, at least he started to laugh. Is this a joke? Gosh, I really thought there was some life changing philosophy from that story. However, Captain Roger’s face became serious again and said this,

“Well, she was both right and wrong.”

And this made me realize, when we believe in something by heart, whether it’s a quote or a religion, it doesn’t necessarily have to be right. Sometimes what we believe in for all we know could not be correct at all. However, when we are driven by such inspiration, by such foundation fuelled by love and determination, we will be surprised how it all ends, and how realization comes only after achieving our heart’s desire. Life is so simple, why must we complicate its simplistic perfection?