A Serious Ocean
You know it by the northern look of the shore,
by the salt-worried faces,
by an absence of trees, an abundance of lighthouses.
It's a serious ocean.
North Sea off Carnoustie by Anne Stevenson
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Tomorrow will have an island
by William Stafford
Tomorrow will have an island. Before night
I always find it. Then on to the next island.
These places hidden in the day separate
and come forward if you beckon.
But you have to know they are there before they exist.
Some time there will be a tomorrow without any island,
So far, I haven't let that happen, but after
I'm gone others may become faithless and careless.
Before them will tumble the wide unbroken sea,
and without any hope they will stare at the horizon.
So to you, Friend, I confide my secret:
to be a discoverer you hold close whatever
you find, and after a while you decide
what it is. Then, secure in where you have been,
you turn to the open sea and let go.
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Reflections on
a Successful Passage
by Fran Jezisek
Fran took part in
the March 2004 passage from Fort Lauderdale to San
Salvador (and back). This is an excerpt from
a post-passage email from Fran to balance of the
crew. I think Fran captured the magic of
this trip very succinctly. JK
It was great sailing will you guys, I had an
absolutely terrific week.
Some of the highlights that I took away from
the trip to San Salvador:
- The get acquainted BBQ on the dock
- The detour to Miami
- Carracci band entertaining until the wee
hours of the morning
- Taking on the additional duty of snore
patrol to ensure I would get some sleep
- Electrical shorts
- Hoisting John K. up the mast
- Catching the shark on the fishing line
- John K. having to bleed the line from the
diesel tank
- Snapping pictures along the way
- Gale force winds
- 15-20 foot seas
- Rotating 2-hour shifts
- Heavy rains and storm squalls
- The plastic on the starboard side blown out
by a rogue wave
- Charlie's vest inflating when the cockpit
was swamped with a huge wave
- 5 o'clock cocktails to revisit the daily
events, share stories and relax when weather
permitted
- Running aground in the cut going into Riding
Rock marina
- Dinner at the 3 ships restaurant in San
Salvador, without reservations
- High seas delaying the departure by a day
from San Salvador
- Touring San Salvador with Snake Eye
- Touring Club Med with John, taking pictures
so we could prove we spent the week at the
resort
- Lunch in San Salvador, drinking the local
beer, relaxing and enjoying the ocean view
- Celestial Navigation and getting
reacquainted with the constellations
- Blowing out the mainsail not once but twice
- John K. working hard to make the sail
repairs
- Sharing homemade cookies and treats and
laughs along the way
- Cozy dinners in the cockpit
- Avoiding cargo ships with pitch black skies
and high seas
- Detangling the Genoa
- John having to peel me off the helm to get
his turn behind the wheel
- John K. securing the emergency tiller only
to see stars with the lazarette cover crashed
down on his head
- Returning to Fort Lauderdale Saturday
afternoon only to face a malfunction with the
bridge opening
- Jumping off at the dock with Tom to catch a
cab to the airport
- Depart hugs from crew
- A feeling of sadness when Quetzal (aka
pretzel) backed away from the dock
- The crew and Captain being tested constantly
along the way but coming through it a stronger
crew
- Wonderful memories to look back on
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