Sail Away with Me-a Commentary That Will Make You Think!
What if you could sail all over the world-and live in a sailboat 85% of the year? Would you see things differently than you do on a daily basis-without a house to keep up-no mortgage/rent, no property taxes and NO guaranteed job? Read on!
I recently caught a PBS special-called ICE BLINK-a story about a young couple who has lived most of their adult life on a sailboat-traveling from shore to shore-from the time they were in their 20s-married-now having raised 3 children 'at sea'! This story put a whole new perspective on what 'life' should really be about-so much I was anxious to record their story when it re-aired last night. They met in their 20s-and began sailing from one place to another-then they eloped. Shortly after Dave married Jaja-she became pregnant with her first child. She was born in one county-then they had 2 more children-they also born in different countries. This program elaborated on their life and the lifestyle that a young couple with 3 kids lived on a daily basis-and how they all adapted to 'life at sea'. Just a small sailboat-very cramped living quarters-and living on only the 'barest of necessities' from day to day. It showed them sailing in beautiful exotic areas with sandy shores and beaches-to encountering an iceburg in freezing cold temps--the small boat manuevering between blocks of ice-as the couple and their 3 kids all worked together in bad or stormy weather to escape to a safer shore. The program interviewed the couple and also their 3 kids-and they told how they had learned to live 'without' things most Americans take for granted. There was no TV allowed on the boat-as Dave and JaJa wished to put the kids attention on their homeschooling and education. These kids learned how to manuver the tall sails-it portrayed them swinging 'in the ropes' safely tied and secured-high above the boat-carefree and not afraid or scared of any dangers of their style of 'swings'-compared to those most kids grow up using that do not go swinging wildly over a boats edge with the awesome ocean beneath them. The couple talked about the tight living quarters-the kids talked of no privacy-nowhere-except in climbing to the upper levels to share their secret thoughts. But they also shared how 'once you adapted to 'the space you have'-you need no more-it becomes comfortable in the living space that would appear to most of us ridiculous to live in! It showed dolphins dancing lighting up the ocean with a fluourescent glow in the nightime of phosphorous-as they swam around the boat-and seagulls flying so low above your head-you could hear their wings flapping in your ears as they flew over.
They made a very valid point of what 'normal' is-to them vs. most people who live in a spacious house. They felt totally happy and at ease with what some people called 'a crazy way to live'-living on a sailboat-charting courses from one country to another-encountering bad stormy weather-to iceburgs that were taller than the boat itself. The couple stopped at times-and worked at 'any job' they could find for money-and lived a spontaneous lifestyle-open to 'whatever' came to them-or what jobs they could find-one for Dave that led him to rebuild a ship for a manager he worked for! That job started out as something so tedious and small-and led to a greater opportunity for him he didn't expect. This couple and their 3 kids lived a life that very few of us would ever attempt to do-but many 'older retired couples' began to tell them-they were envious of their lifestyle at so young an age! So much freedom to see the world-and also allow these kids to grow up learning about different cultures and languages was an experience very few kids ever have from the day they were born! Tough? Yes-most definitely-but the couple and the 3 children were so happy and complete with who they were-despite what anyone thought about their choice to live this lifestyle sailing the oceans from shore to shore. Dave began to take photos of the different countries and magazines began to publish his images-he videotaped their ship encountering storms-to exotic shores-to the kids snowboarding and skiing. This young family learned the true meaning of how to adapt to any environment and how to live a different way. There was a quote the moderator used about this young family and how they felt about their life- "You are not defined by what you have-but what you have done in life." The story was amazing-the family was also. Indeed-if only we could see things in our 'own lives' differently-about what is TRULY important in life! Can we learn something from this couple about what is really important in life? Most definitely-the fact we can dream about anything-but we must learn that we can make our dreams come true-just maybe not the way we think we expect to! I think that Dave and Jaja found 'it'-that the key to happiness that means being happy doesn't have a thing to do with material possessions-but about finding contentment with what we have and are given and sharing with others when possible! Being happy is loving what we already have-and to be thankful for what we receive no matter how big or small- but realizing that doors to bigger opportunities may come through what appears to be a small entranceway!
To learn more about this family-and also see the awesome photography they have online go visit the link below!
"To stand at the edge of the sea, to sense the ebb and flow of the tides, to feel the breath of a mist moving over a great salt marsh, to watch the flight of shore birds that have swept up and down the surf lines of the continents for untold thousands of year, to see the running of the old eels and the young shad to the sea, is to have knowledge of things that are as nearly eternal as any earthly life can be.”
~Rachel Carson~