Summer Homework, Alfred Lansing, Endurance, Part VI, Chapters One-Three

"It is a battle against a tireless enemy in which man never actually wins; the most taht he can hope for it not to be defeated. It gave Shackleton a feeling of uneasiness. He now faced an adversary so formidable that his own strength was nothing in comparison, and he did not enjoy being in a position where boldness and determination count for almost nothing, and in which victory is measured only in survival(Page 221)."

As the group on the island lived in a hell of their own, the ones on the boat headed to South Georgia Island were experiencing their own slice of Satan's paradise. Water constantly splashed into the boat and lack of free movement made discomfort constant. Rotten odors from the water logged, slime covered sleeping bags mad the trip all the more unpleasant. Shackleton felt a degree of responsibility and he was humbled, making  him more oriented to keeping his crew alive and less concentrated on honor from achieving his goals. It seems that disaster brings out the best in many.

This reminds me of Finals week in my freshman year. I was overloaded with information and study materials. I was aware that my study habits were not the best and that if I wanted to do good on my tests, I would have to spend less time playing video games and wasting my time and study hard the tests that lay ahead of me. I immediately worked to improve the habits that I had been building for years. I changed for the better just as Shackleton had done on the voyage to Georgia Island.