Introduction – Don’t Be a Pebble – Be a Rock!

Captain’s Log: May 1, 2014. Sitting at my desk, my first book newly published, refusing to rest on my laurels. This is the first writing of what will become my second book. How shall we begin?

It’s now late 2024. I am no longer an airline pilot, but I like to think that I remain an author. So what has me writing these days? My life for years has had a priority of creating legacy and meaning, for myself, and especially for others. Has anyone given me grist for that continuous mill lately? Well, yes, actually.

Someone recently lamented that a coworker had died and a week later he’d been replaced. It was shocking to her that the world simply kept turning as if he’d never existed. The image that came to her mind was that of a pebble tossed into a pond – small ripples evident for a little while, then nothing. I understood her sorrow, and even her shock. And she got me thinking. Can we somehow change that perception of a life when it’s over?

For instance, what happens when you throw a big rock rather than a pebble?

When you were a kid, did you and your friends ever stand on the edge of your favorite creek or pond and heave in the biggest rocks you could wrestle? My group of budding warriors certainly did! We roared as we contested to see who could make the biggest splash, initiating cascades of water splashing up onto the banks. And if we could manage big enough rocks, often their tops remained visible above the surface of the water, their presence obvious forever to anyone looking that way. Indeed, those rocks forced the water to change its path as it flowed around them. Impact; significance; legacy. And yes, meaning.

When your life is over, will those who knew you think of you as a pebble or a rock?

This book is my second. The first was somewhat longitudinal in nature, a memoir of stories from my own life and those around me, and chronological. I hope it was (and is!) encouraging. That was my objective in writing.

I have the same objective for The Captain’s Log. Much like ships’ records kept by sea-faring captains of antiquity, this is my record of significant voyages I’ve taken, many literally as an airline captain, others as organic observations that presented themselves along the way of the biggest journey of all, the journey of life. In that sense it’s also a memoir. But it isn’t chronological. Each chapter is its own, having arrived in its own time, with its own beginning, middle, and end.

Something you’ll notice is that many of these log entries were written during what I call “The Age of Covid,” from early 2020 through early 2022. Those will reference thoughts I had as I came to work with my colleagues in the airline industry, wearing masks, being as safe as we could while the world tried to understand the plague and come to terms with it. Recent as those events are, I imagine you’ll relate.

Now, this. I had a mentor years ago who told me that I had collected 65+ years’ worth of stories that I had paid for with my life, that some of them were pretty good, and that any good story comes with a moral. Because of that, he encouraged me to share those stories with you. So here we are.

As of today, the manuscript is complete. Editing and layout may change the chapter count, but so far there are 45, each containing 1,300 words, give or take a few hundred. It is enough, and I’m declaring it “good.”  I’ve officially entered the next phase, the phase of editing, which promises to be arduous. Still, after 10 years of walking through the book writing process, the end is in sight.

But still a few nautical miles ahead. We’re not there yet. Editing, layout, and design will take months. Those processes will make what I’ve done to this point all the better. So as we anticipate putting hard copies in your hands (and the hands of your friends and family – Christmas is coming! Maybe next Christmas, but still…) here’s my pledge.

If I’ve done my job, you’ll enjoy the stories. And the lessons and simple thoughts they contain will be useful and will help you navigate the inevitable turbulence you encounter along your way.

More importantly, if I’ve done my job, these logs will encourage you to turn inward and look for the means to become a rock, not a pebble, over the course of your life. And that others will then see your wisdom, visible above the water, for many years to come.

Thanks for reading. I am grateful for you.

Captain Mark

Early winter, 2024

Link to Mark’s book, The Symphony of Your Life

The Symphony of Your Life    

The Symphony of Your Life on YouTube

Mark graduated from the USAF Academy in 1982. After nine years as a pilot on active duty, he left the military to join a commercial airline. Recently retired from flying B-737s around the country, Hardcastle spends time in the Rocky Mountains and serves on the artistic staff of the Colorado Children’s Chorale. He lives in Centennial, Colorado, with his wife and four children. Need some help figuring out why you’re on this planet? Want to talk about discovering your mission and purpose? Contact Mark today at 720.840.8361 to schedule a free personal consultation. He can also deliver an inspirational keynote or workshop for your organization! email: mark@symphonyofyourlife.com for information.