The Captain of My Soul

Jared and I recently watched the movie Invictus. The film features a poem by William Ernest Henley that was inspirational to Nelson Mandela during his 27 years in prison.

Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds and shall find me unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll,
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.

I thought that the poem made a good point about taking charge of your life and not letting yourself be controlled by circumstance. However Jared told me about a response to this poem written by Orson F. Whitney which outlines an even better path:

Art thou in truth? Then what of him
Who bought thee with his blood?
Who plunged into devouring seas
And snatched thee from the flood?

Who bore for all our fallen race
What none but him could bear-
The God who died that man might live,
And endless glory share?

Of what avail thy vaunted strength,
Apart from his vast might?
Pray that his Light may pierce the gloom,
That thou mayest see aright.

Men are as bubbles on the wave,
As leaves upon the tree.
Thou, captain of thy soul, forsooth
Who gave that place to thee?

Free will is thine--free agency
To wield for right or wrong;
But thou must answer unto him
To whom all souls belong.

Bend to the dust that head "unbowed,"
Small part of Life's great whole!
And see in him, and him alone,
The Captain of thy soul.

I found this response even more inspiring than Henley's poem. It was a good reminder to me of the humility it takes to allow the Savior to be my soul's true Captain.

River Front Park

On the weekedn of the 4th we decided to drive to Spokane to visit River Front Park.


Ever since Abby watched Mary Poppins she has begged me to take her on a Carousel ride. This Carousel was built in 1909 and these horses were hand carved out of wood. It was a fun piece of history to revisit.

Maddy had fun riding with her daddy.

The girls enjoyed riding on and feeding this goat. If you put garbage near the goat's mouth, he sucks it up like a vacuum. It is a great idea for keeping a park clean since all the kids were searching the ground for any liter so that they could feed it to the goat.

The girls also enjoyed this slide shaped like a giant red wagon.

We didn't really dress for it, but since it was so hot, we decided to enjoy the splash park too.

Ready, set, go!

We walked out on the bridge for a view of Spokane falls.

The girls liked the little kid-sized peep holes so they could see the waterfall too.