Swords

Why is it that people who retire often find themselves inexplicably craving work? Our lives are conditioned to work, to accomplish something, to maintain what we have always had. So it is in "Ulysses" when Ulysses craves what he once had, fulfilling his goal to accomplish something late in life. This same desire can drive someone to find a new spouse, buy a new car or find a new job. People hate to "rust unburnished, not to shine in use!". The human drive to accomplish something worthy has led many, including Ulysses, to contemplate leaving all that they have worked for, in the name of adventure. Some may say this decision is vain and useless, but in truth, this fire of human spirit keeps many from wasting away in futility till death claims their meager existence as they sit idle in the "barren crags". The human life and mind is too valuable a treasure to waste away, so to emulate Ulysses is something to which all should aspire.