"it was always oarswept ships that thrilled my heart,
and wars, and the long polished spears and arrows,
dreadful gear that makes the next man cringe.
I loved them all – god planted that love inside me.
Each man delights in the work that suits him best."
– Homer
The Odyssey, Book 14, lines 256-260. Odysseus reveals to Eumaeus the things that motivated and thrilled him: warfare and ships.