In the first Star Trek pilot The Cage, when the Enterprise receives an eighteen-year-old distress call from a starship that crashed on the planet Talos 4, Captain Christopher Pike declines to investigate. He orders that they continue on to Vega Colony, where they can attend their own sick and wounded. As their primary mission is to explore, and as they are perfectly positioned to aid any survivors, the crew is shocked by his seemingly callous decision.
Pike doesn’t stay on the bridge to gauge the crew’s reaction to his order. Instead, he retreats to his quarters, where he calls the ship’s doctor to attend him. Dr. Phil assures him that he won’t question the decision, but he does argue that Pike should finally take a break from the daily strain of command.
Still plagued by the fight on Rigel 7, which cost the life of his yeoman and two others, and in which seven more of his crew suffered injury, Captain Pike opens up and shares that he is considering retirement: he could return home to ride his horses, or become an independent trader on Regulus or Orion. He no longer wishes to be weighed down with the responsibility for all two-hundred-and-three lives aboard the Enterprise. Dr. Phil is swift to condemn this attitude, insisting that those other life options are not right for Pike. Dr. Phil’s prescription? Captain Pike must lives life as it happens. He must meet every problem head on and lick it. Anything less constitutes turning his back on life, and consequently he will wither away.
Captain Pike has seen members of his crew suffer and die. The universe is full of dangers, and as long as he remains in command, people who look to him for leadership and protection will suffer injury and death. No doubt he looks back on the Rigel 7 incident and questions his actions and decisions. But Dr. Phil insists that what Pike needs is a rest-leave, not a “safer” line of work. There are no “safe” jobs, and neither Pike nor society-at-large would benefit from his taking a lesser vocation, one in which his unique talents and abilities go unused.
When we’re bleeding physically or emotionally or even spiritually, it’s tempting to review our former actions and condemn them because they led us to this dark place. Hindsight is perfect; walking forward through life demands that we make each day’s decisions as best we can. Even the best-laid roads contain bumps, or can lead uphill for a longer distance than we’d prefer. When your strength begins to ebb, obey Dr. Phil’s orders for a short “rest-leave.” Then get back up and start chasing your dreams again.
Pike doesn’t stay on the bridge to gauge the crew’s reaction to his order. Instead, he retreats to his quarters, where he calls the ship’s doctor to attend him. Dr. Phil assures him that he won’t question the decision, but he does argue that Pike should finally take a break from the daily strain of command.
Still plagued by the fight on Rigel 7, which cost the life of his yeoman and two others, and in which seven more of his crew suffered injury, Captain Pike opens up and shares that he is considering retirement: he could return home to ride his horses, or become an independent trader on Regulus or Orion. He no longer wishes to be weighed down with the responsibility for all two-hundred-and-three lives aboard the Enterprise. Dr. Phil is swift to condemn this attitude, insisting that those other life options are not right for Pike. Dr. Phil’s prescription? Captain Pike must lives life as it happens. He must meet every problem head on and lick it. Anything less constitutes turning his back on life, and consequently he will wither away.
Captain Pike has seen members of his crew suffer and die. The universe is full of dangers, and as long as he remains in command, people who look to him for leadership and protection will suffer injury and death. No doubt he looks back on the Rigel 7 incident and questions his actions and decisions. But Dr. Phil insists that what Pike needs is a rest-leave, not a “safer” line of work. There are no “safe” jobs, and neither Pike nor society-at-large would benefit from his taking a lesser vocation, one in which his unique talents and abilities go unused.
When we’re bleeding physically or emotionally or even spiritually, it’s tempting to review our former actions and condemn them because they led us to this dark place. Hindsight is perfect; walking forward through life demands that we make each day’s decisions as best we can. Even the best-laid roads contain bumps, or can lead uphill for a longer distance than we’d prefer. When your strength begins to ebb, obey Dr. Phil’s orders for a short “rest-leave.” Then get back up and start chasing your dreams again.
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