Posted by Ed Kiser on May 27, 2004 at 21:01:07 from 152.163.252.98 user Kisered.
In Reply to: Re: Swallowdale review in (Manchester) Guardian 26-05-04 posted by Pam Adams on May 27, 2004 at 17:43:37:
In Swallowdale, after the shipwreck, and everybody had sailed away leaving them at their temporary camp in Horseshoe Bay, John took stock of his situation there.
John felt the dismay, and the loss of his boat. He felt so responsible for that loss and for what that would do to the rest of their holiday.
Suddenly, he had remembered that there was no Swallow. There was no boat at all. There they were on the shore of the lake, as if of the shore of a great sea, but they were prisoners on land.
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Captain Flint became a bit of a philosopher when he was speaking to John about the wreck, and its consequences, and he told John:
"Things might have been a lot worse. Don't you worry about it overmuch. When a thing's done, it's done, and if it's not done right, do it differently next time. Worrying never made a sailor."
"It isn't worrying," said John. "It's just that I hate myself for being such a duffer."
"Um," said Captain Flint, "I wouldn't mind betting you've been just as much of a duffer lots of times before when nothing's happened. We're all duffers sometimes, but it's only now and then we get found out."
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In the many years since I first read those words, they have come back to me many times. Sometimes when driving a car, I do something that is a bit careless, such as changing a lane without carefully looking about, only to notice some poor soul sliding his brakes to keep from being sideswiped by me. Somehow, he took care of me that time, and nothing happened. So there was that time that I had been a duffer, but thanks to the driving skill of that other driver, I had not been so horribly found out. At times like that, we realize just how lucky we were, that nothing really bad happened. And as for the next time? Well, like Captain Flint said, "do it differently next time." So I carefully check not only in the rear view mirror, but also look beside me a quick glance to see if someone has moved up into my blind spot. We learn; sometimes the lesson gets very expensive - then those other times, we get lucky.
We also learn from the words to the wise that Ransome has given me. I am a far richer person for having had those experiences.
Ed Kiser, South Florida