What Does Not Kills You Makes You Stronger

Outgoing postcard US-XXXXXXX to Italy was a motivation card with a quote What Does Not Kills You Makes You Stronger.

It was derived from what Friedrich Nietzsche (1844 - 1900), the German philosopher, once said: "That which does not kill us, makes us stronger."

Lighthouse Westerheversand

Postcard DE-3712774 from Germany shows a rainbow and the Lighthouse Westerheversand, located in Westerhever on the northwestern tip of the Eiderstedt Peninsula in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. Surrounded by salt marshes, it is a major attraction on the peninsula for its 80,000 annual visitors.

The 9-story lighthouse was built on a mound in 1906, with a focal height of 41 meters and a range of 21 nautical miles or 39 kilometers. It can be seen as far as 55 kilometers away in a clear day. The lighthouse was featured on a 55-cent German commemorative stamp in 2005.

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Island of Options

The caption on postcard DE-3212323 from Germany says "Inmitten von Schwierigkeiten liegt immer eine Insel der Möglichkeiten." This German proverb means "in the midst of difficulties, there is always an island of options."

A similar Chinese proverb "车到山前必有路，船到桥头自然直" can be directly translated into "When you get to the mountain, there'll be a way through; when you get to the pier-head, the boat will go straight with the current." Therefore, Don't worry too much beforehand; let's deal with it as it happens. Everything will turn out for the best in the end.

Another Chinese proverb "水到渠成" is the best for describing Germany's crowning at the 2014 FIFA World Cup today: "When water flows, a channel is formed." When conditions are mature, success will come. At the final match, Germany felt the heat from Argentina in the 22nd minute of the match when Argentinian forward Gonzalo Higuain intercepted the ball from German midfielder Toni Kroos and was one-on-one with German goal-keeper Manuel Neuer. Also, at the second half, Lionel Messi, Argentinian captain and forward, posed a threat for a goal with his left-footed curling shot.

When the match headed towards extra-time, history was against Germany as Argentina had never conceded a goal in the extra-time before. However, German super-substitute Mario Götze broke the dead-lock with the help from another substitute André Schürrle. The Germans are the 2014 FIFA World Cup champions, winning the Trophy for the fourth time after overcoming Argentina 1:0 at the Maracana in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

#452123340 / gettyimages.com

American Merchant Mariners Memorial

Postcard US-2489809 to Finland shows the American Merchant Mariners Memorial at Battery Park, New York City, near the line to board the ferries to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. It was designed by Marisol Escobar, based on a photograph from a true event during WWII when a German submarine attacked and sank an American merchant vessel. The submarine surfaced and took photographs but did not pick up the survivors. All mariners were eventually lost in the Atlantic Ocean.

The memorial was dedicated on October 8, 1991.  The memorial depicts the after-attack scene where three mariners on a lifeboat, with one mariner trying to reach another mariner in the water, which is best appreciated by viewing the monument over time. At high tide you can only see the mariner in the water with a hand sticking out of the water; at lower tide you can see the hand and the mariners' head; and at the lowest tide his entire upper torso will show. As described at Lost At Sea Memorials dot com: "as ships pass by, the waves created give the memorial a sense of life and motion. The seaman’s head bobs above and below the water’s surface, as the arm of a seaman in a lifeboat strains to save his shipmate. Two others on the lifeboat are looking directly at the submarine, which will eventually submerge again and leave them for dead."

The memorial is considered an overlooked gem among the monuments in New York City. I have been to New York City and seen the memorials several times. However, it was not until my 2011 trip to New York City on the BluePass by Jetblue when I decided to take a closer look to learn what it was about. The photo on the card was taken on November 21, 2011.