I love the writings of Andy Andrews for so many reasons. His books have caused history to come alive to me. His writing makes me think about things that perhaps I ordinarily would not & I so appreciate that in him.
About two weeks ago, I finished his book, The Final Summit. This book continues the story of David Ponder, a character from one of his previous books. In this book, David Ponder meets up with several of the brightest minds in history to try to find the solution to humanity’s problem before time runs out. The solution must be stated in two words. The two words must be found in five tries.
Can I just say that as much as I wanted to get to the end of this book to know the solution, I also did not want this book to end! Seriously, this book was just so thought provoking & enjoyable. Woven throughout the story are thoughts which are stated so poignantly & creatively that they impact the reader deeply. And so, I thought I would share some of these “nuggets” of truth:
- Adversity is preparation for greatness. (page 12)
- The tragedy in man’s life is not that he quits; the real tragedy is that he almost wins but never begins his second act! Strong people are sometimes allowed a taste of success – a sip of the good stuff – to whet their appetite for the long haul. (page 58)
- The destination for which we should strive is one of a successful life, not necessarily a life of success. (page 73)
- The person whose hope remains unshaken has within them the power to do miracles. Hope sees what is invisible, feels what is intangible, and achieves what most consider impossible. (page 86)
- Proof of hope is that you breathe. For if you are breathing, then you are still alive. And if you are still alive, that means you haven’t accomplished what you were placed on earth to do. If you haven’t accomplished what you were put on earth to accomplish, this signifies that your life’s very purpose has yet to be fulfilled. If your purpose has yet to be fulfilled, that is proof that the most important part of your life remains ahead of you! (page 87)
- In seeking wisdom, thou art wise; in imagining that thou hast attained it, thou art a fool. (page 98)
- Courage is resistance to fear or mastery of it, but it is not the absence of fear. (page 129)
- Practice = making yourself do something you don’t particularly want to do in order to get a result you would like to have. (page 156)
- Abraham Lincoln is quoted as saying: “And so I learned to discipline myself to walk instead of sleep, to enjoy the company of certain people instead of brooding alone, to read good books & listen to happy music instead of reflecting sorrowfully or desperately on my feelings of depression.” (page 159)
- How I behave – how I act – ultimately controls how I feel. So I discipline myself to act in the manner in which I want to feel. (page 160)
- It is a person’s character that will determine greatness. (page 174)
- Character is formed in the swirling storms that are human life. (page 174)
- Reputation is merely what others think you might be. Character is what we really are. Character is what a man is in the dark. (page 179)
- When you do not know what to do, do something. (page 206)
- The person who faces no hardships gains no strength. (page 217)
- Never again will I allow what I cannot do to interfere with what I can do. (page 218)
There was so much more that I could share from “The Final Summit”. Hopefully this is enough to whet your appetite. Besides, you need to know the solution to humanity’s problem. Thank you, Andy, for sharing your gift of writing with us all.
