“Let's run away together. Let's make every moment count, starting now.”
Why it's great
Two Let's clauses build like a vow, rushing the listener into the present tense.
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Use it yourself
Let's start today. Let's make it count.
00:00 / 04:49
00:00 / 04:49
Walter Finds a Lead in Greenland, Explained
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty · 2013
Chapter 7 of 16 · 4'49"
Walter and Cheryl uncover a real lead: the ship's name points to Nuuk, Greenland. She urges him to follow it up, and he drifts into a daydream about running away with her. Back in the office, Ted demands the missing photograph, and Hernando admits it cannot be found anywhere.
Key moments
Start here, then watch the full scene- 0:24–0:53
A Lead Points to Greenland
29s - 1:23–2:51
❝ Monologue · 24 lines The fantasy farewell
It escalates from elopement to deathbed farewell, silly and sincere at the same time.
88s
Walter Finds a Lead in Greenland, explained
What happens
Walter and Cheryl work the clues together: Sean is definitely not in New York, Peg mails multiple copies, and one went to Greenland. When the ship's name finally loads, it points to Nuuk, Greenland, and Cheryl tells Walter to follow it up. He slips into a daydream about running away with her, before Ted's threat and Hernando's search bring him back to reality.
What's really going on
The chapter is built on the gap between Walter's inner life and his actual one. In the real office, he and Cheryl make genuine progress: the ship name, the multiple copies, the lead pointing to Greenland. "You should follow that up," she tells him, and for once the advice is practical. But the moment she says it, Walter leaves — not physically, but into a fantasy where they run away together and make every moment count. The fantasy is not silly, exactly; it is the shape of the courage he does not yet have. When he returns, the film undercuts him with Ted's demand for the photograph and Hernando's report that it is nowhere. The scene ends with a man who can imagine an adventure more easily than he can start one.
Key lines & what they mean
- “Let's run away together. Let's make every moment count, starting now.”
- The fantasy in full: Walter imagines a life of bold choices and no wasted time, everything he is not yet doing.
- “but it's as full as Fort Knox.”
- The daydream's romantic flourish, comparing his tiny heart to a vault stuffed with gold.
- “You're the bravest man I've ever known.”
- The fantasy giving Walter the admiration he never receives in real life.
- “That song is about courage and going into the unknown.”
- Cheryl correcting the bearded man: the song is about taking a risk, which she means as encouragement.
- “So next time I see you, I see that picture. Okay?”
- Ted's ultimatum, turning the missing photograph into a deadline Walter cannot avoid.
- “Thank you for such a wonderful life.”
- The final line of the daydream, a peaceful goodbye inside a life Walter has only imagined.
Theme
- Dreams — Walter's daydream of running away with Cheryl is vivid, while the real lead sits waiting on his desk.
- Courage — Cheryl says the song is about courage and the unknown, which is exactly what Walter has not yet chosen.
What this chapter teaches
Teaching points
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Language points
Click a card to jump to its moment in the videoGolden lines
A great line in its own right — why and how to use it“but it's as full as Fort Knox.”
Why it's great
A gold-vault simile turns a small heart into something overflowing and grand.
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Informal
Use it yourself
After the reunion her heart was as full as Fort Knox.
“You're the bravest man I've ever known.”
Why it's great
The plainest compliment, sealed by ever known, becomes the highest praise.
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Neutral
Use it yourself
You're the strongest woman I've ever known.
“That song is about courage and going into the unknown.”
Why it's great
It redefines a pop song as a creed, quietly giving the hero permission to leap.
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Neutral
Use it yourself
That film is about courage and going into the unknown.
“So next time I see you, I see that picture. Okay?”
Why it's great
A deadline and a demand in one breath, softened by a final, clipped okay?
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Informal
Use it yourself
Next time I see you, I see the draft. Okay?
“Thank you for such a wonderful life.”
Why it's great
A farewell thank-you that turns an absurd fantasy into something genuinely moving.
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literary
Use it yourself
Thank you for such a wonderful career.
Monologue
One character carrying the scene — shadow the whole passage❝ The fantasy farewell
Let's run away together. Let's make every moment count, starting now. Sweet! Can I tell you something? Anything. I have that Benjamin Buttons thing. Where you get old, but smaller. Or whatever, and become a gradual old baby. Or something. I didn't see the movie, so I don't really know how it works. But I have it. We can still build a life together. Cool. I like your snappy little suit. I bought it at a doll store. Oh. Cool. My little heart is no bigger than a quarter... but it's as full as Fort Knox. You're the bravest man I've ever known. I love you, baby. Not like "baby," like... because you look like a little weird baby-man. I get it. Thank you for such a wonderful life. Just nestle in here and die. Good-bye, Walter.
It escalates from elopement to deathbed farewell, silly and sincere at the same time.
Up next · 08speak from the heartThe scene: Walter Searches a Greenland PubTakeaways
What you walk away with- Following up turns a clue into a journey.
- A pop song becomes a lesson about courage.
- The fantasy farewell is both ridiculous and sincere.
- Hedging with maybe keeps a guess from sounding like a claim.
People also search
Questions, then the linesWhat lead do Walter and Cheryl find?
The name of the ship in one of Sean's photographs turns out to belong to a vessel in Nuuk, Greenland. Cheryl tells Walter to follow that lead up.
What is Walter's daydream about?
He imagines running away with Cheryl, making every moment count. The fantasy also includes a joke about ageing backwards, and ends with a peaceful goodbye.
Why is Ted angry with Walter?
Ted is waiting for the photograph for the cover and expects it immediately. He warns Walter that the next time they meet, Walter had better have the picture.
Why can't they find the negative?
Hernando has searched everywhere, including Receiving, and the frame is simply not there. He suggests Sean may never have sent it, or that it is still with him.