ALL IS LOST…

all is lost

image courtesy of photobucket.com

I saw the sail first… It looked like a half of a balloon, bright orange, puffy, with radius ridges. It popped in contrast to the magnificent blue ocean. I couldn’t see the feet dangling, but I could see the ski rope and traced it back down to the boat. I’d seen parasailing a ton when I was a kid, but not so often anymore.

Of all the things that may have, or should have come to my mind, the first thing that popped in my head was like something out of Ghostbusters. When Bill Murray’s character told his gang to not think of anything bad, their thoughts would be used to create the object that would destroy earth.

When the giant Stay Puffed marshmallow monster appeared, Bill Murray said something like, “I didn’t think of that!” – “Did you think of that?” he asked, Harold Ramis’  character, who answered, “No! – I didn’t think of that. The both of them turned to Dan Aykroyd’s character who was standing there dumbfounded and admitted, “I couldn’t help it!” – “It just popped in there!” … I totally got that line in the movie…

Of all the things I should have thought of when I saw the parasail? I thought of Jughead… Yeah, the Jughead from the Archie’s… It wasn’t even my comic book. When I was a kid, I temporarily swapped one of my Hulk comic books for my buddy, Bobby’s. I probably read that comic book six times or so, but the dumb thing has stuck with me my entire life.

I can still see the picture of Jughead flying around after the rope had accidentally snapped on his parasail. Back then, while entertaining, there was always a subtle message, even in comic books. In that comic book, the first thing Jughead did was panic, but with time, he used the experience he had no control over to see the world in a way he couldn’t have otherwise.

Although coming down was difficult, Jughead did survive and had a new perspective on not only the city but also his life… It’s not like that anymore… The subtle lessons taught now are all about a person getting what they want in order to fulfill their physical lives and senses.

The character of the person has been lost… The true life lessons that teach the value of character above all else and the most prized possession to be sought after has been replaced by the love of self or humanism… and the results are immediate.

A popular evangelist of that comic book era was Billy Graham. In my younger years, sometime beyond my comic book phase, I read a quote by Billy Graham that has stuck with me as well. It too is an object lesson in self-control, a little less subtle than the comic book.

The noteworthy words; “When wealth is lost, something is lost. When health is lost, a great deal is lost. When character is lost, all is lost.” I appreciate the moral and character lessons I’ve grasped in my life. Who we are can be shaped by many things… even a childish comic book, I suppose…

Maybe they weren’t so childish after all…

How I enjoy a good memory…

And lesson…