Your efforts, though defeated, are still glorious —— Reading When the Stars Shine (V)

since childhood, we have been warned by our elders and teachers: we should be brave and be the first. Because, everyone thinks, no matter in study or career, only first can we get the greatest honor and be remembered by others.

However, after reading the following story, will it subvert our previous understanding? In fact, as long as you have worked hard and struggled, you can be the most amazing yourself even without dazzling light.

At the beginning of the 2th century, with the successful arrival of Americans at the North Pole in 199, there was only the last place on the earth where there was no human footprint, and that was the South Pole. Although many countries and expeditions tried to accomplish this feat, they were always unable to succeed because of the harsh natural environment.

On June 1st, 191, an expedition led by Captain Scott of the Royal Navy set out from England. Their wish is to let the Antarctic land, which has been silent for thousands of years, plant its own national flag.

Scott, calm and decisive, has a strong will like steel. With the confidence of winning, he did not hesitate to sell his property under the condition of insufficient funds, and resolutely bid farewell to his young wife and young son and began an adventure.

for this great cause, they have made careful and sufficient preparations. On the voyage ship, there are both the most advanced equipment and the simplest defense tools. Cameras, phonographs and pianos give them spiritual enjoyment; The exploration of penguins and rocks has provided the latest achievements for scientific research.

at this time, they got a somewhat depressing news. It turned out that almost at the same time, the expedition led by Norwegian Amundsen also came here. Moreover, the distance from the South Pole is 11km closer than them.

You know, this is no ordinary highway. Once you step on the gas pedal, it's only an hour's drive. This is a place where it takes a lot of effort to make further progress in ice and snow. What should we do? Take things as they come. For the honor of the motherland, they must fight with all their strength.

December and January are the warmest seasons in Antarctica. Because only at this time can the sun show a small face. The expedition team members took the time to act. They have two kinds of transportation: automatic sledge, and sled pulled by Siberian ponies and dogs.

according to the plan in advance, they will build a warehouse on the road every two days to store food, clothes and energy for their return journey.

just a plan can't compete with the cruel reality. Only two days later, the engine of the automatic sleigh broke down and went on strike. However, the state of the pony is not as good as expected. It was originally scheduled to travel 4km every day, and the result was often only 3km.

During the trip, some players suffered from snow blindness, while others suffered from frostbite on their limbs. Besides people, animals are also precious. Some sled dogs escaped, and some horses fell down, which brought them unexpected troubles. Shooting those weak horses in desperation also makes them very sad, because after all, they have been together for two years and have a feeling that they can't give up. But they have to face the cruel reality.

according to the plan, with the deepening of the trip, they need to eliminate people constantly. From the initial 3 people, it was reduced to five people and sprinted towards the last more than 2 kilometers.

Although the last trip was extremely difficult, they were still in high spirits and forgot all their hardships because of the support of their beliefs.

however, at this moment, the cruel reality gave them a blow. Because Amundsen's team has arrived before them. For an instant, all the efforts seemed meaningless. They can only mechanically and sadly plant their own national flag next to the Norwegian flag. Moreover, I accepted Armond's request to forward a letter left here to the King of Norway.

Desperate, Scott and his teammates took heavy steps on their way back. And the weather at this time, like their mood, is particularly bad.

The flying snowflakes blurred their vision again and again, and the snow under their feet formed thick ice, which made people unable to walk. But even so, they still don't forget their mission. For example, Wilson, who is in charge of scientific research, still carries rocks weighing 16 kilograms on his sleigh, because these are all valuable materials.

The road under our feet is so long, and the lack of food can't provide enough energy for the human body. Finally, a teammate went crazy because of unbearable pain, and fell down forever in a place one day away from the next camp.

When the fear spread in everyone's heart, another teammate's foot was frozen. In order not to drag others down, the brave gentleman said to his teammates lightly, "I want to go out for a walk, maybe I will stay outside for a while." And passed away forever.

The remaining three people are only 2km away from the next warehouse and can't walk any further, because the temperature is 4℃ below zero. They struggled in a small tent for eight days, and they were helpless in the face of cruel nature. Food has also been exhausted, waiting for them, only the fate of freezing to death or starvation.

when they knew that a miracle was impossible, they chose to face it calmly. Scott, the last one facing death, tried to hold the pen in his hand and kept writing letters.

He told his wife that he never regretted the trip. He said:

"You know, I have to force myself to be aggressive-because I always have a tendency to be lazy." Yes, although it is human instinct to stay in the comfort zone and enjoy it, only by forcing yourself to go out and experience the storm can we achieve faster growth.

He also wrote letters to the families of other teammates who died and to his friends. What a feeling it is to want to comfort others when your life is about to die.

the most touching thing is the letter to the motherland. He is not sad about his fate, but he is proud to participate in this great cause.

when people finally found the bodies of Scott and his teammates and saw these scientific research materials and precious letters exchanged with their lives, who would think that life without winning the first prize was doomed to be buried?

Although it didn't achieve the expected success in the end, this indomitable will to climb the peak inspired thousands of descendants in Qian Qian.

in the journey of fate, there will be many uncertainties. There are too many things that we can't control, but no matter what the circumstances, the determination and perseverance to move forward bravely in the face of difficulties will always be worthy of recognition and learning.

your efforts, though defeated, are glorious!