Every sailor needs to face and overcome weaknesses

Under a starry night sky on the South China Sea, I saw a sailor sitting alone on the deck of a warship toying with a Rubik's Cube. After a while, his hands fell still and his gaze fixed on the dark-blue horizon.

It was the sixth day of the China-Russia Joint Sea 2016 drill. After an entire day of tough training, the sailor was finally taking a chance to relax.

His entertainment options were limited, though. I couldn't help but think of an episode of Soldiers Sortie, a classic TV show, in which one bored soldier tells the other, "Here, staring at an ant is a kind of luxury."