Welcome to Let It Be Easy with Susie Moore. Okay, so my husband and I watched this documentary a few nights ago on National Geographic, I'm pretty sure it was, and the documentary is called Endurance.
And it's all about this, I mean, it's called the greatest survival story of all time.I'm gonna read a tiny bit about it here, because I want to give you the correct information.But the documentary itself is about this
feat of leadership and perseverance, where polar explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton kept his crew of 27 men alive for over a year, despite the loss of their ship in frigid pack ice.
Over a century later, a team of modern-day explorers sets out to find the sunken ship. So yes, it is National Geographic where the documentary is.And oh boy, is it fascinating.I was like, gosh, why have I never heard of this ship?
But it was in 1914, a group of explorers went to essentially the South Pole.And I mean, this is when, you know, it was like a wooden ship.It wasn't the technology.
that we have now and the resources that, you know, the 100 years of evolution with maritime, with shipping, I mean, wow.What they went to that very frigid part of the earth with was, I mean, by modern day standards, incredible.
So this, the captain, Sir Ernest Shackleton, took his crew, 27 men, as an explorer to the South Pole.Now, it was so cold when they got there that the ship froze, right?The ice just surrounded it and it couldn't move.
Initially, they kind of parked there, hoping that the seas would open up, that the ice would melt slightly.That didn't happen.And then this ship sank. And these men, I mean, talk about the irony of the ship being called Endurance.
I've never seen a story like this.What they had to do, how they had to survive, what they lived with, what they lived without in these freezing conditions, these most hostile conditions.
It's remarkable that no one was left behind, that there were no fatalities.Truly, I really recommend this documentary. But I'm not getting into this pod episode just to talk about a cool documentary.There is a lesson in this.
Okay, so when they abandoned the ship they had to, because it sank, they took their lifeboats, and forgive me if I'm getting the language kind of wrong here, but you get the gist.
They had to drag their lifeboats, because essentially they were walking over the frozen sea, and at some point they were going to need to get into the boats, right? So they're dragging their boats, dragging their boats, and the captain was so clear.
He was like, you can only have two pounds per person of personal items to carry.It's going to be too heavy.They were running low on food.Oh boy, like what they had to do.Watch it if you want all the details.
But what was so interesting was one of the crew members brought his banjo, you know, good old banjo, like a kind of guitar, I suppose.
And he naturally put that, tossed that in the pile of items they weren't going to carry because it was a non-essential.But the captain said, oh, no, no, no.We need the banjo.It's vital mental medicine. Oh, my friends in the South Pole.
All these men, no food.Oh my gosh.They're walking around with a banjo, playing the banjo. Why?Because the human spirit matters.How we feel, our emotional state, our ability to connect heart and mind, our ability to find joy, our ability to remain.
Not just human beings going through the motions of life, but experiencing togetherness, joy, art, some pleasure, some laughter. Vital mental medicine in the throes of hell where they were alone.
I can't help but think this banjo made a contribution, however minor, to this epic survival. So my question for you today is this, what is your vital mental medicine?What are you doing every day?
Maybe it's a Let It Be Easy podcast, I hope I'm part of it.Maybe you're a meditator, maybe you love to take long walks, maybe long conversations with your friends when you need it, when you need that connection.
Whatever it is, don't forget to take the vital mental medicine that might seem superfluous, it might seem unnecessary, it might not seem practical. You need it and only you know what it is for you.
Never stop my friends, even in desperate situations, keep taking your mental medicine. Until tomorrow my friends, so much love
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