philosophy of a sailor

[dusty]

i'd like to hear about what wisdom sailing has brought to you.

something i've picked up after my seventh sail is the meaning behind the term 'wind change'. i'd heard that term before i'd ever set foot on a sailboat before last month. 'wind change' being said to describe a change of circumstance in some life or work situation.

now i understand. one gets a header or a lift in life, and one modifies his vector to yet attempt to acheive the desired coordinates without splintering one's timbers on the corals on the way.

i guess i have a difficult time explaining things such as this, especially too early in the day to be drinking a beer

but, it's like it brings to mind something i can only describe as a mental template for viewing the journey through life in some sort of cubic or quadratic equation: the dimensions of the world we are present in, time is a function, modified by the chaos of circumstance thrust upon us on that journey. seeing changes as a wind change, and knowing that if one tacks to compensate the header or take advantage of the lift, the whole journey has changed.

now that i see life from the deck of my eva, a new awareness is slowly ebbing in.

wind change. have you had any?

[dusty]

hmmmmmm.... would another piece of wisdom be, "don't ask other sailors their wisdom?"

could be, could be....

or maybe, "don't fill up the board with comments, people will stare at you funny"

or maybe, "as you sail through the storm breathe deeply and remind yourself that you are the thinker of your thoughts, not the thoughts themselves"

[mgoller]

Dusty,
Wind Change?  In my life the wind blows all the time.  Just keeps blowing!  I just drop sail, or sometimes heave to and go below for a nap.  Sometimes, I drop anchor or get into port.  If the wind changes, I still seem to be going to the same destination, but sure, I adjust the sails.  It always seems to be blowing.
Yeah, I figured I'd fill up the board today and give you a break.
This time of year there is less activity because most sailors either are doing honey do's, fixing something in the driveway, or sailing.
Who wants to sit at the computer in June?

[dusty]

here's a little philosophy that readily extends itself beyond the sea, save the scenario of the setting...:

keep your head out of the boat.

so, obviously, that's saying, don't get lost in a trance while fiddling with the VHF transceiver or the bell and whistle buttons on the GPS enabled depth gauge slash pearl finder. watch where you're going, be aware of the area and trajectory and potential trajectories of your craft, and the craft around you. don't allow death such easy captives. expect there will be the unexpected.

master walks through everyday life as nimble as you please, but with the care of crossing an iced-over stream and the alertness of warrior in enemy territory.



The mind is originally empty, and only when it remains empty, without grasping or rejecting, can it respond to natural things, without prejudice. It should be like a river gorge with a swan flying overhead; the river has no desire to retain the swan, yet the swan's passage is traced by its shadow, without omission.   ~ Lin Ching-hsi

[john walker]

I f you drink beer on the boat do not exceed 1 per hour!  Johnny Walker

[dusty]

hey johnny, i don't see that rule in the ten commandments

[multimedia_smith]

I saw this topic when we got back from our month long annual escape from the New Orleans miserable summer... I didn't respond at the time... but I was reading this by chance on the Siren Owner's site and I thought it insightful and concise enough to share. 
Here is the quote.


"Ol'Bill's been asking for storys lately, So I thought I'd try to contribute.
So,although due to a group of unfortunate circumstances I haven't been sailing
at all this year, But, I've been thinking a lot about the things sailing has
given me,and how much about life in general Sailing will teach you.
First, Try as you might, you just can't go straight on into the wind.you will
never get anywhere. period. But how many times have we gone against the
prevailing "wind" at work or social situations? You will get the same result,
getting nowhere. When I learned about tacking, I also figured out how to "tack"
in the rest of my life as well. I also learned that the wind is fickle, always
be prepared to change you course accordingly. Be certain of your destination,
but be ready to change your route at anytime.
I learned to be brutally honest with myself about the condition of the boat. My
life could depend on it. if it's not 100% change it.That taught me to be
brutally honest about my life. If you see something is amiss fix it before it
breaks.especially between friends and family.It's your life, make sure it's
shipshape and bristol fashion.
Practice good seamanship principals in all that you do.when life gets choppy,
make sure eveythings tied down.
I learned that a lot of shoals are uncharted. How many times have we said to
ourselves "Wow, I shoulda seen that coming!" Good sailing demands that we pay
attention,as does good living. You can't always trust the charts....in any
circumstance.
Most of all, I learned about balance.When everything is set just right you feel
it. it's hard to find the words for, but you just sense ,at that moment , all is
right with your world. The slightest weight shift, anything can throw it off.
The balance of the wind in the sails, the action of the center board, where i'm
sitting,etc. all factoring in to the equation. But when you do everything just
right, magic happens. I learned to try to balance my life the same way. I can't
do it just yet, but hey, a guy needs goals, right?
The rewards of our little boats come on so many levels, for me it's more than
just a boat it's a symbol of freedom.A deeper more personal sense of freedom.
Freedom to chart my own course, to captain my ship, however small, the way I see
fit. like a king to a country, master and commander of all I survey...Ok, thats
a bit much, but come on I'll bet everyone of us has assumed our very best
"Discoverer of new Continents "pose on the bow at least once.On the other hand,
it teaches you just how small you are in the world, at the mercy of the
elements, or in awe of it's majesty, or most often, moved by its incredible
beauty
Just sitting in the driveway,My boat is a blessing. it's a promise of better
days, a light at the end of the tunnel. a reminder of sunny days past and more
to come in the future. Funny, you just don't get that from a car.....
Oh, one more thing...Even after a hurricane, eventually the sun will come out
again.
Any thoughts?
Al
Stargazer"

[dusty]

nice, soul-refreshing look at life. that means a lot to me that you shared this - thank you.

makes me want to get myself to that wind-blown temple on the water and do some worshipping of existance.



n'orleans? sorry you had to go through that, man. i speak from faith when i say the great spirit treasures you all the more that you weathered such hard times. by grace alone do we breathe and how precious our time.

[multimedia_smith]

... anywhere else they would probably say " amen brother"...
but here they'd probably just say... "Yeah you right, bra!"
Take Care
Dale

[Craig Weis]

Enjoy the life of a home brewed sailor, as a young child skippy here has been on the water. The parents had a delightful 46 foot schooner from Chicago we would take a few weeks and sail up the north channel of Lake Superior over to Drummond Island to see the uncle and to parts where the nearest road on shore was around 40 miles away from where the anchor sat in the rocks.
I had a 12 foot long Penguin that I'd sail out of Belmont Harbor in Chicago out around the fresh water intakes for the city, that is a 3 mile sail oneway in Lake Michigan and back. I was maybe 12 years old.  All by myself.
The point being these excursions emboldened me to ignore my fears and reach for the unknown. A prep for life to be sure. Thanx skip.