You’re the Boat: Charting a course toward a life worth looking forward to.
Your attitude is like the rudder of a ship. Adjust it appropriately to get where you need to go.
This book uses the analogy of a ship to describe life. Attitude is our rudder. Our heart is the ship’s wheel. The mast describes our strength. The sail is our soul. That beautiful lady on the front of the vessel describes our face. We see what we need to fortify ourselves within the portholes: provisions, fun, and rest. Imagine the impact of not having those things on your attitude. Like the old Snickers commercial says, “You’re not yourself when you’re hungry!”
This idea allowed me to see myself beyond where I came from and what happened to me. It enabled me to recognize myself as an authentic person. This analogy introduced me to my Captain, a.k.a.the Universe, and the values of my compass. It grounded me in the keel of my responsibilities. Steered by the Captain in my heart, I felt passionately compelled to share this concept and leave behind a legacy for my son, my nieces, and future generations yet to come. With gratitude for what this analogy taught me, I wanted to share it and help improve the world. (I still do.)
Despite having no experience writing or publishing, I decided to write a book in 2011. I packed the book with insights, including inspirational quotes and the original boat drawing from 2008. The chapters describe the ship’s many parts through four systems: guidance, logistics, propulsion, and navigation. Click this link to download the PDF and read the book.
Then to now.
With assistance from friends and my husband, I self-published this book in 2012. The first week after publishing the book, I discovered I had missed some parts. Imagine my surprise to realize I had missed the bell because my last name is Belding, for heaven’s sake!
Over the years, I’ve enjoyed chatting with people about the analogy, and thanks to these inspiring conversations, I continue uncovering more parts of it. The bell represents our voice, and the navigation lights remind us to show up so other ships can see us! The eight boundaries, physical, material, mental, emotional, sexual, spiritual, temporal, and virtual, make up the waves of our challenges. The deck describes our awareness within our body, mind, and soul. Every day, we need to “swab the deck” (clean ourselves and our home) and “run the galley” (prepare meals). There are so many more discoveries! Now, I’m busy pulling them together in books for people of all ages.
New books
Today, I’m working on many new books to share these ideas. Let me know which one you’d like to hear more about.
- The 8 Boundaries coloring books for little kids, older kids, and adults. Like the lines in a coloring book, boundaries help us see who we are and who we are not. Each book has 32 pages describing the eight boundaries: physical, material, mental, emotional, sexual, spiritual, temporal, and virtual.
- The Body, Mind, and Soul Book for Kids. This teaches children ages 4 to 8 awareness of themselves through their body, mind, and soul using the Boat analogy.
- Be a Boat: Charting a Course to a Life Worth Living is a workbook for Young Adults. It is an updated version of the original analogy and includes worksheets to inspire deep personal understanding.
- 365 Days Charting a Course to a Life Worth Living. This journal/daily calendar offers short writing prompts for young adults.
- So glad you’re here! This beautiful lap-sit book looks at all the fun things babies can look forward to experiencing with their people.
- The New Chef Friendly Cookbook This is spiral–bound and contains cooking tips and easy, inexpensive recipes to inspire young chefs to build a menu and cook for themselves and their crew.
- The Deck of Awareness Oracle Deck and Guidebook uses the four systems of the Boat (guidance, logistics, propulsion, and navigation) and all the ship’s parts to help you see the best in yourself while charting a course to a life worth living.
I’m using the funds from my card readings and art classes to publish these books. Please email me at pam belding at g mail dot com and tell me which book you’re most interested in seeing come to life.