You know how you get lyrics stuck in your head? In 1996, I was at Hope Summer Repertory Theatre in Holland, MI, and my friend Harrison Long sang a song he wrote about a nearby lighthouse (yup, the one in the photo).
“little red lighthouse not far from Saugatuck
illuminates the rocks beneath the waves…”
To this day, every now and again, I hum this song to myself, and more often than not, it’s that phrase. Perhaps it’s just the part that I remember. But I think there’s some significance to those lyrics for me.
If we get totally metaphor-crazy here and think of life as a boat trip, every single one of us has bounced off an unseen rock or two (or a hundred) beneath the water’s surface. (And ok, this is technically a business blog, right? So you can change out “life” for “your business journey,” if you want. Either way.)
And periodically, we’ll come across some person, some thought, some experience, something that gives us a moment of clarity, a moment of illumination. Those lighthouses can build cumulatively, opening our awareness of ourselves and the life (or business journey) around us. But only if we let them.
The waves (& the rocks) aren’t going anywhere. But neither are the lighthouses. They’re all part of the adventure.
p.s. And now you know why the lighthouse on our homepage is red. 😉
