During early years of WW II, German U-boat blockade devastated Great Britain in an attempt to starve this island empire into submission. Nazi submarines, operating in wolfpacks, roamed North Atlantic attacking and destroying convoys unmercifully. They sank an alarming number of military and merchant ships, denying Britain desperately needed provisions. The British Royal Navy, concerned with tremendous losses of ships along with their crews, commissioned a study to determine what might be done to reduce number of casualties during sea rescue. During post rescue interviews, an interesting discovery was made. Remarkably, survival rate among young, presumably more physically fit sailors was much lower than among their older shipmates. The interviews revealed that older, more experienced sailors had survived primarily due to having overcome prior adversities in their lives. These experienced sailors had developed courage and confidence in face of tragedy. The head of research project, Kurt Hahn, was so moved by this discovery that he developed “Outward Bound” program, to train young sailors. Through a series of progressively rugged challenges Outward Bound helped young recruits develop internal fortitude necessary to survive harsh physical challenges. The next time you are faced with adversity, learn from it and know that you are becoming a stronger person because of it!

The Great Seal of United States of America was designed to reflect Founding Father’s beliefs and values and also sovereignty of new Nation. The coat of arms on front of great seal is symbol of United States of America and is depicted on dollar bill. Each element of seal’s design has a specific meaning. The color white signifies purity and innocence. Red represents hardiness and valor. Blue signifies vigilance, perseverance, and justice. In eagle's beak is a scroll inscribed with Latin motto, E Pluribus Unum, “out of many, one.” In eagle’s right talon is an olive branch, and in his left a bundle of thirteen arrows. The eagle is facing toward olive branch symbolically reflecting our Nation’s desire for peace. The thirteen arrows represent thirteen original colonies and reflect our power and resolve as a people to fight for our values and personal freedom. In response to terrorists attack on this country, eagle is now turned facing arrows. The American Spirit will overcome this provocative threat to freedom and democracy. President Abraham Lincoln was certainly no stranger to hardship. Amidst death and destruction of civil war President Lincoln noted, “The only good thing about adversity is that it comes one day at a time.”