The captain of a great ocean liner had begun as a cabin boy years earlier and gradually worked up to is high position. He had become one of the most respected men on the high seas. His assistant, who had served with him for years, observed and emulated his every move. But one thing about the captain puzzled him: every morning the skipper went to his cabin, opened the top drawer of his desk, took out a small slip of paper, read it with intense concentration, returned the paper to his desk and locked the drawer.
After many years, the captain retired and his assistant took command. The first thing he did was open that drawer to discover what was on that slip of paper. The paper had but one sentence on it: “Port is left; starboard is right.”
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