Literature: The Moral in the Knot

Amongst others, he taught me a fisherman's bend, which he pronounced to be the king of all knots; "and Mr. Simple," continued he, "there is a moral in that knot. You observe, that when the parts are drawn the right way, and together, the more you pull the faster they hold, and the more impossible to untie them; but see, by hauling them apart, how a little difference, a pull the other way, immediately disunites them, and then how easy they cast off in a moment. That points out the necessity of pulling together in this world, Mr. Simple, when we wish to hold on."

~ an excellent lesson from one of the original nautical novelists, Captain Frederick Marryat in Peter Simple

Header: The Long Leg by Edward Hopper via American Gallery