“‘a very beautiful river, I love it more than anything. Often I have listened to it, often I have looked into its eyes, and always I have learned from it. Much can be learned from a river.'”

When Mr. Ferryman said this, I immediately thought of him just personifying a river, describing how meaningful and beautiful the river is to him, but when I repeatedly think of this I view it differently every time.

Imagine yourself hiking towards a river and you lean over so your head is parallel to the surface of the water. What would you see? A reflection. What if Mr. Ferryman has been seeing his reflection this whole time and just describing himself? Might sound crazy, but since rivers have no eyes, it’s reasonable to think so.

Now imagine you lose your best friend or breakup with your partner, no doubt you’d think about them a lot. Mr. Ferryman lost his wife and actually thinks about his wife ever since her death. Mr. Ferryman can hallucinate his wife when he looks into the river because she is “a very beautiful [lady],” and he “loves [her] more than anything.” Also, when he was with his wife he would’ve continuously learned from her. For example, her interests, hobbies, her teaching him things, how to cook, etc..

According to the spiritual meaning of water, water represents life. So, Mr. Ferryman could just be describing his life as well. He sees his life as beautiful and important. Life is full of emotions and actions, including mistakes. And with mistakes, “much can be learned from…” them!