an excerpt from a book i've recently finished:
"This is the story of Saint Christopher.
"According to legend, Christopher was a Canaanite. A giant, some say. A man of great strength who was afraid of nothing. He made up his mind to serve only the greatest, strongest man in the world. But no matter where he looked, he could find none worth devoting his life to... Christopher built a house for himself on the banks of a river and made a living carrying travelers across the water... He owned only a single pole, but he used it to pick his way through even the roughest current and carry people safely to the other side...
"One night... There in the darkness beside the river was a small child. The child told him he had to get to the other side before the night ended, and he asked Christopher to carry him across... The child, so light at first, grew heavier the higher the waters rose. The weight, like a massive piece of iron, so unbelievable for such a small child, pressed down on Christopher's shoulders... The once overly confident Christopher began to tremble with fear for the first time at the thought that he might drown... the child vanished and Jesus appeared before him, surrounded by a dazzling light. He said, 'Christopher! What you just carried was no child. It was I, Christ. When you crossed that river, you were carrying the world on your shoulders.'"
Over his glasses, Professor Yoon's keen and gentle eyes stopped on each of us in turn before moving on.
"Each of you is both Christopher and the child he carries on his back. You are all forging your way through adversity in this difficult world on your way to the other side of the river...
"You are Saint Christopher. You are the ones who will ferry the child across the river. It is your fate to brave the swollen water. Though the waters may rise, you must not stop before the child reaches the other side. So how do we cross this river?...
"We cross by becoming Saint Christopher to one another. By carrying the child across together. There is no difference between the person who crosses and the person who helps another across. You are not just Saint Christopher, carrying your pole into the rising water. You are the world and its creators, each one of you. Sometimes you are the Christopher and other times you are the child- you carry each other across the river. So you must treasure yourselves and hold one another dear."