In a way, I feel sort of imprisoned.
Wondering what is happening amongst the world outside?
Longing to reach out.
With a long list of questions.
How’s my family?
Is the weather nice?
The surf good?
Andy Irons?
Any games of VB being played?
Are my Lakes still undefeated?
Miami, Boston?
World happenings?
Getting an e-mail out here in the middle of the sea is a bigger than you can imagine.
So please if you find a moment please feel free to reply back.
I hope my e-mail to you finds you well and happy.
All the best,
James
Part 1.
Rumblings from the big ugly sea.
From more than a thousand plus miles out to sea somewhere between Brazil and South Africa.
It’s been raining for a week straight with 30+ MPH winds and 8-10 foot seas.
Last night while on watch, we were taking in a trawl (a trawl is a big metal device with a big net attached to the end of it and used to collect the plastic trash).
In the stormiest night of our trip, I almost went over the railing while pulling a trawl in.
As I slid across the deck under the dark sky, the relentless rain and amongst a sea of waves splashing over us.
With my two hands glued to the line and pulling with all my weight, which is down considerably, do to a lack of food.
I quickly dropped my left hand from the line and grabbed the wire railing as I crashed into it.
Almost flipping over and coming face to face with the twisting and churning battered Ocean.
My left foot yet again being smashed which is already minus one toenail.
Luckily I was clipped in had I not been able to hold myself up.
Just the thought of it leaves one feeling pretty darn small in comparison.
Because falling over board out here is like falling of the face of the earth.
Strange because my heart never skipped a beat.
Part 2.
Sailing isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be.
I’ve been on a lot of trips and this one, by far is the most challenging of all.
Cramped quarters with a crew of 13 aboard a 72-foot sailboat.
With sleeping quarters stacked on top of each other literally an arm’s reach away.
Capturing a good night’s sleep can be challenging at best.
Not only is it raining outside but inside now as well.
Balmy and hot.
Damp and continued rain for day’s.
Getting comfortable and clean.
Is a distant memory?
My patience is wearing thin.
Nothing like sharing a steam room with 12 others.
Using a toilet in conditions like this is no easy task.
Often clogging and the ever result of pumping your own stuff down,
Is something we never have to think of at home?
The kitchen is a constant mess.
Plates and cups staking up.
Bodies litter the gully down below.
Nothing takes less than 15 minutes at a time.
Whether it’s getting something to eat or just showering.
Is there any end in sight?
With the constant twisting and turning.
As the Sea Dragon makes it’s way through the stormy seas.
Hopefully tonight I won’t fall out of my bed.
Part 3.
The great wide open.
Testing the human spirit is important.
Through it we have a better understanding of just who we are.
How lucky we are to have the lives we have at home.
I can sit on deck of the Sea Dragon for hours on end, which I do daily.
Rain or shine.
My life displayed out there across the sea as if it were a canvas.
My vision becoming more and more clear with each passing minute.
You soon realize how much we take for granted.
Through this journey.
I have once again learned how to appreciate the good, small and everyday moments in life.
The stillness,
Quietness.
Clarity and focus.
The movement of the water.
The crashing of waves.
Crumbling forward like avalanches of white water.
Watching the flying fish take flight.
The taste of a fresh mango.
The wonder of a sunrise and the beauty of the sunset.
Counting shooting stars.
There’s a greater reason to why I am here, on this journey.
I’m not sure exactly what it is yet but I know soon, that I will.
Something in the way of an experience that I can bring home and share with all of you.
One day soon all of this will make sense.
In the meantime I will continue to grow and reflect.
Work on my patience.
My being, and what it is that I want to accomplish.
I can feel the person within evolving.
Life is short.
So you better live it.
And living it I am.
The simple life that is…
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