If I Could

If I could give the world a present it would be to have everyone test negative for COVID 19, quarantine for fourteen days on a sailboat, and then congregate in a place where life is lived in open air.  This gift was bestowed upon us and our fleet-mates when we arrived in Antigua.  Of course, our safety in numbers is fleeting as we start to mix with the general population, but I will never take for granted this time that we have been given to meet the colorful characters that I believe we will call our friends well into the future.

The first night we got together was great fun and utter mayhem.  Everybody was talking at once!  In several different languages!  Laughter would erupt suddenly from the port side of the boat followed by a group gasp from the starboard side of the boat as different salty stories were told.  Rum punch glasses were filled and depleted with a magical wave of our host’s hand.  Sweat beaded on our foreheads and our skin flushed as if the day’s sunshine was exploding out of our bodies.  It was a night to remember, as has been every night since.

The days are equally unforgettable.  A seemingly endless network of tropical hiking trails beckons us to explore in the mornings and the turquoise water is waiting when the temperature rises in the afternoons.  The Antiguan streets are lined with everything from sail lofts, to grazing horses, to roadside stands that sell ackee and saltfish.

We have been lucky enough to fill our days with extra specialness by visiting primary school participants of the Hands Across the Sea literacy program (https://www.handsacrossthesea.net/).  Not only did we get to personally deliver their requested donations and read aloud to the students at Liberta Primary School, but we got invited to the CT Samuel Primary School’s fantastic spelling bee!  Grades four, five, and six competed in five nail-biting rounds, including a riveting speed-spelling finale.

We also learned to dive.  On day one of our lesson, everything went as planned.  I slipped into my skin-tight wetsuit effortlessly, leaving the front unzipped to show just the right amount of cleavage.  When we arrived at the dive site, I donned my mask over my perfectly sleek hairdo and backflipped into the water, James Bond-style.  Luckily, we saw an octopus and a friendly shark before we had to begin our top-secret mission.

Now imagine the extreme opposite of what I have described above and you will understand what learning to dive was like.  My wetsuit is lined with crazy glue.  Putting it on requires a team of people to unstick and re-stick it to different parts of my body over time. It also has a back zip, which causes the fabric to compress all evidence of my female anatomy, as well as my windpipe.  Michael looks like a young Sean Connery in his.  I feel like a breakfast sausage in mine.  

The class involves simulating every which way one can die under the water from either lack of air or nitrogen toxicity.  In other words, it’s an awkward and terrifying experience!  But here’s the thing, sailors dive.  We need to be able to see, clean, and at times repair the bottom of our boat in remote areas.  It’s a necessary skill that potentially has the benefit of being a leisure activity as well.  So we muddled through it.  

For me, the reward was not the certification or the experience of seeing sea turtles in their natural habitat.  It was the sensation of genuine peace in the form of Neutral buoyancy.  

To all of you who are separated from family this Thanksgiving, we hope you find your peace.

Last remarks:

We have seen first hand the superior work of Hands Across the Sea.  The organization builds and stocks libraries, and promotes literacy education in schools throughout Antigua and Barbuda, as well as many other Caribbean Islands.   If you would like to donate go to https://www.handsacrossthesea.net/  Your money will be very well spent!

Thank you to Salty Dawg Sailing Association!  There are too many good things to write about our experience with SDSA, just join! https://www.saltydawgsailing.org/

Thank you to Fatjax, Kalli, Skylark, Roxy, Flora, San Giulio, Tropicool, Alisara, Escape, and all the other Dawgs for being. We are so happy to have met you!