Sailing the Distance

Good morning everyone. OK…so I am a year older as of yesterday. Birthdays do have a way of making one think about time. Everybody gets excited about time, sooner or later, but yesterday actually got me thinking more about distance.

Now distance, there is something to ponder. Distance traveled is very important when one is sailing. Of course distance traveled is a function of speed and, yes, time. But because of known and unknown forces at work in the sailing universe distance traveled is not just a straight-line linear process. (Hope you see th elife parrallel here.) Distance makes all the difference when approaching a rocky shore. Sometime rocks and other ships “loom” up visibly on the horizon at one distance and then disappear for a short time as you approach only to appear again when you get closer.

I was reminded as I was talking with Karla, one of our passengers, on the phone that I have this new found need to hold things just a little further away than I used to read them. Jen went through this same thing last fall. The young optometrist she went to see guessed that she was just getting in to her 40s and that the local drug store had plenty of fashionable reading glasses that would help correct her problem. I have been vainly holding off all winter but alas as 40 get further and further away I find myself holding books further and further away as well. (Ok…enough giggling out there in cyberland!)
So here is where I had to laugh. This distance thing is actually good. No I am not excited about going to get my distinguished look at the drug store but I am struck by the realization that as I hold books further away so do I hold my life’s experiences and in both cases I begin to see, with distance, things with a little more clarity than I did just a few years ago.

Photo by Jim Dugan.

Have a great day. Be well. Do Good.

Hail Mary

My heart is heavy with sadness as I write this particular blog. Since the beginning of August our dear friend and cook for the last 12 years, Mary Barney, had been struggling with cancer. I have intentionally respected Mary’s privacy and I apologize to you for not sharing any news about Mary’s health sooner. On Monday afternoon Mary passed away very peacefully at home, surrounded by friends and “family”. Her departure was as graceful as the rest of her life. Many people, including Jen, have been doing heroic work to support Mary these last few weeks. Oddly enough Mary was never very excited about transitions though this was about the fastest transition she ever made. And as I struggle to let go of Mary I realize I am terrible with transitions as well. We used to joke about how we liked things just the way they are, thank you very much, so why change what is working already even if it might be less labor intensive. Hard works is its own reward. I used to joke about getting Mary a Cui...

Sailing Vacations
A Maine Windjammer

Search This Blog