This is a little piece I wrote on September 22, 2003.

Life is like a BC Ferries trip. It has a beginning and an end; the whole trip takes 90 minutes. Some spend the trip reading; others, playing video games; still others, chatting with friends. Eating is a pleasure. Some sit with family, mostly in silence. There's a gift shop. There are lineups. You hear laughter, and grumblings. People usually don't talk to strangers, though it happens sometimes. A woman sorts her beads into pill containers. A man studies the behaviour of the people in his vicinity.

Then there are those who take on responsibilities for the good of all: the person vacuuming, the cashier, the cook. These have taken on roles above and beyond that of passengers. They sacrifice their entire trip for the good of others.

So how does one take a ferry well? How do I want to spend my trip? Definitely enjoying the scenery a bit, though not too much as it can become tiresome to do so. But mainly sitting in silence, ideally in the company of friends or family, merely sharing a word of encouragement or empathy once in a while. In any case, quietly giving thanks to God for the food, the fresh air, the peace, the beauty of the sea. Yes, I would spend my trip in peaceful gratitude, meditating on the good things I am receiving from God in the moment. And hopefully, by some stroke of creativity or circumstance, doing some good to some stranger, before the trip ends.

Near the end of our journey, we are tired, and we want to get off the boat as soon as possible. If it's nighttime, we ask, "Do you see the lights yet?" The ferry walls shudder during the last few minutes of the journey. Then silence. We leave the vessel and set foot on land.

From this meditation I suppose I have found my mission: To live a life of gratitude to God, and to continually seek ways to enrich the lives of people I meet on the way.