I just saw this poster picture online and thought “Other than the dangling preposition at the end, this is great,” but of course in modern times we dangle all sorts of things. So I present it for your contemplation.
You've heard the old story. Three guys at a construction site independently asked what they're doing. One guy says, "Hauling stones, can't you see?" The second answers, "Putting up a wall." The third says "Building a cathedral." That's the attitude we want for ourselves and our partners. Many people attribute to the author of The little Prince the sensibility that we shouldn't just teach others to build boats but to long for the vast adventure of the sea. The quote that circulates on social media is this:
If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up the men and women to gather wood, divide the work, and give orders. Instead, teach them to yearn for the vast and endless sea.
And it's apparently just made up but summarizes a lesson in St. Exupery's Citadelle, a part of which says in English translation:
Building a boat isn’t about weaving canvas, forging nails, or reading the sky. It’s about giving a shared taste for the sea, by the light of which you will see nothing contradictory but rather a community of love.
That's our aspiration in anything we do: A shared taste and vision of something great and noble sought in a community of love.
