An Analogy That Says Alot

It's an analogy that says alot without saying much. At first blush this might not mean much. It might even seem inadequate or not descriptive enough, but for anyone, like me, who has been in the military and felt this feeling, it's perfectly adequate and descriptive enough.

Losan’s captain, a forty-sevenyear-old German named Hans Groder, had been the box ship’s master for eight years, having spent ten months out of every one of those years at sea. A tougher schedule than his previous job— captain of a German Navy Type 702 Berlin-class replenishment oiler— but the pay was much better and the stresses much fewer. Better still, Losan was a blue-water ship, a nice change for Groder after twenty-two years of navigating the labyrinthian waters around Eckendorf and Kiel Naval Bases. Such a pleasure to simply point one’s bow into the Atlantic and steam away with hundreds and thousands of feet beneath your keel and not a speck of land on your radar. Of course, on his more introspective days Groder indulged that sense of melancholy all sailors and soldiers feel once they’ve left military life behind, but on balance he enjoyed his life and the autonomy it allowed.



Clancy, Tom; Blackwood, Grant - Dead or Alive

The key statement is this one:

Of course, on his more introspective days Groder indulged that sense of melancholy all sailors and soldiers feel once they’ve left military life behind

Perfectly descriptive enough for anyone who has felt that melancholy.