Throw Deep

The NFL Hall of Fame quarterback Ken Stabler was once being interviewed by Sports Illustrated when the journalist recited a quote from the author, Jack London that was near to London’s statue in Oakland:

“I would rather be ashes than dust!

I would rather that my spark should burn out in a brilliant blaze than it should be stifled by dry-rot.

I would rather be a superb meteor, every atom of me in magnificent glow, than a sleepy and permanent planet.

The function of man is to live, not to exist.

I shall not waste my days trying to prolong them.

I shall use my time.”

When sked what these words meant to him personally, Stabler replied with the gritty confidence of a veteran, “Throw deep.”