If I had not some strength of will I would make a first class drunkard.
Ernest ShackletonRead
I do not know what 'moss' stands for in the proverb , but if it stood for useful knowledge... I gathered more moss by rolling than I ever did at school.
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes the value of experiential learning over formal education.
Ernest Shackleton reflects on the idea that practical experiences, symbolized by 'gathering moss', provide valuable knowledge that surpasses what is learned in a traditional classroom. This suggests that engaging with the world and learning through doing can yield richer insights and skills than theoretical education alone.
In practice
In a workshop on personal development, this quote can inspire participants to value hands-on experiences.
If I had not some strength of will I would make a first class drunkard.
Now my eyes are turned from the South to the North, and I want to lead one more Expedition. This will be the last... to the North Pole.
I have often marveled at the thin line which separates success from failure.
(Was he talking about a polar expedition, or marriage?) -Jorge Men Wanted: For hazardous journey. Small wages, bitter cold, long months of complete darkness, constant danger, safe return doubtful. Honour and recognition in case of success.
After months of want and hunger, we suddenly found ourselves able to have meals fit for the gods, and with appetites the gods might have envied.
A man must shape himself to a new mark directly the old one goes to ground.
The truest help we can render an afflicted man is not to take his burden from him, but to call out his best energy, that he may be able to bear the burden.
Some writers sit down without a thought of what they are going to say, and they go through draft after draft.
The secret of a good old age is simply an honorable pact with solitude.
If your heart is large enough to envelop your adversaries, you can see right through them and avoid their attacks. And once you envelop them, you will be able to guide them along the path indicated to you by heaven and earth.
You can discover what your enemy fears most by observing the means he uses to frighten you.
Over the years I have discovered that ideas come through an intense desire for them; continually desiring, the mind becomes a watchtower on the lookout for incidents that may excite the imagination.
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