Dreams do come true.

Pause. Rest. Be.

I stand here being washed over. Yet, fully participating in the shift. As I am cleansed, I am also worn. - Octavia F. Raheem

Sheez. That Mary can be so serious. Good thing there is Joe. Yes, good thing! Even introducing ourselves to local people in these Bahamian Islands as Mary and Joseph brings a flash of recognition, smiles, second glances or that question, “Where’s Jesus?” from our new acquaintances.

Above: The Sea of Abaco was like glass, allowing exploration by kayak. We saw many sharks, a curious turtle that followed us and a shark that must have been chasing something but Joe intercepted. A little unnerving to be charged by a shark! He took advantage of the afternoon to stretch out on the hammock. Off Powell Cay.

The subtitle of this blog post is the title of a book my yoga teacher Zainab has often quoted. I’ve been dipping into this gem over the last months. The quote comes from the chapter entitled, “Down by the Riverside.” These words spoke to me as we prepared to leave stateside and resonate within me now, even as we engage in the everyday business of living on the boat and the many lighthearted pursuits that have filled our days and nights.

Cheers! The Triple Threat Trio took on a pub crawl of Green Turtle, visiting all open establishments by foot or golf cart. Over several days, we found the Wrecking Tree, played checkers and Rummikub at the famous Green Turtle Club, sampled the Gombay punch at Miss Emily Bee’s(above) and left our signed bill on the wall. Four of us popped a wheelie on our way to find the Tranquil Turtle and the Bluff House. We women found a basketball and shot some baskets, joined by a local boy who showed us all up.

Thankfully for the blog reader, I haven’t been just sitting around contemplating weighty measures but have been out exploring, having fun with our friends on SV Nami and SV Sea Lion and of course, Joseph, more commonly known as Joe, Babe- to me(yuck factor), or most recently, Cappy(new grandpa alert!).

Yoga or exercises in the morning for one of us. Leisurely coffee on the bow or in the cockpit for the other. Kayaking, snorkeling, walking, sharing happy hours, swimming, a little napping, and exploring have filled our days. We’ve seen countless turtles, a handful of different rays, new song and seabirds, many sharks, barracuda, a variety of fish as well as numerous hermit crabs and reptiles. Joe has caught us a few lobster dinners, with extra for our friends. I’m experimenting with growing sprouts and micro greens and have been turning out yogurt regularly using powdered milk and a thermos. On a few cooler days, I’ve baked some scones and created a few meals that felt elaborate. My boat cooking tends to be pretty simple.

Prepping potatoes for roasting. Yogurt making, sprout growing and lobster hunting have been more successful.

Sure there are the repairs and chores. In Hopetown, our first provisioning stop since before leaving Fort Pierce, we needed to rise early to catch the ferry to Marsh Harbor. After about a half hour ride, we walked a few miles towing our cart with backpacks attached. It was a half day adventure to restock half and half, some eggs and fresh veggies! There may have been a stop to replenish the rum and whiskey stores as we’ve held many sunset conferences with our friends Greg and Ann Marie on SV Nami and Jill and John on SV Sea Lion.

Our Saturday night campfire and party at uninhabited Powell Cay.

Falling asleep, our boat tucked into a little cove, breeze flowing through the fore peak, hearing the waves break on the ocean side of the little island we are next to after watching the star show is amazing. Taking a hot!! shower on the stern while Venus “kissed” Jupiter is a memory I would like to etch into my life’s story. What time is it? Look at the sky. What direction is the wind blowing? How deep is the water? Look at the water and around you for the signs. What day is it? Does it matter?

The currents of creativity are beginning to buzz in us as we realize that we are here, living this dream. And yet, sh#t happens. As we moved our phone service from Verizon to less expensive T-Mobile, my phone was locked for several weeks. It took an entire day and kindness on the part of Andreas(pronounced just like my son, Andris’s name, so instant connection and loan of the office phone) at Spanish Cay after we checked in to the Bahamas, to successfully reconnect. In the meantime, I learned to use our iridium go for communications, a plus. Turns out I am unstoppable in that department. Not a surprise to those who know me, I’m sure!

The anchor light decided to take a vacation. The fix requires climbing the mast several times and parts and tools we may not have, so we’ve installed a temporary fix. And so on. Our friends on our buddy boats experienced their own issues. There may have been more than a few beers consumed as I worked on the phone issue and another member in our group worked to download the charts of the Bahamas. Some other small fixes have been solved using collective brain power, tools and hardware. And maybe a Kalik(Bahamian beer). Or two.

Yesterday, that same phone went for an early morning swim in Hopetown. The details of how are not so important for this story. The community that helped me get it back is.

Joe, his phone and wallet in his shorts pocket, thankfully did not follow his impulse to jump in after it. So it sat on the bottom of Hopetown Harbor for hours as we ferried to Marsh Harbor, provisioned, returned and ate lunch. Then I hailed the cruisers’ net on 68 and Muffin on SV Antares responded immediately. She advised two choices: hiring a diver from Marsh Harbor for beaucoup dollars or asking on the net for a diver or dive equipment. I’d hardly finished putting out the call when Chuck on SV Zephyr responded.

Yes, he has equipment. He hesitantly asked about our diving skills and was relieved when I said we are both certified and that Joe is a confident diver. Whew! He escaped having to dive into the soup of Hopetown Harbor, a place crowded with boats spewing all manner of effluent. Oh, did I mention the 7 foot sharks that roam the harbor? At least one bull and one nurse shark of that size peruse the waters.

Joe returned with the gear and we both climbed into the dinghy tied next to Adiona. We endlessly discussed the shark situation and then I realized that we did not have a dive flag to alert boats in this jam-packed harbor that there was a diver just under the surface. Soon after Joe flipped himself off the boat, a power boat headed directly over Joe. I jumped up and down to get the captain’s attention and gestured for him to slow down. He shouted that he saw Joe’s bubbles and turned away. I scanned the water with binoculars, only spying two turtles diving and surfacing at the next mooring. No sharks. The Hopetown Marina and Inn ferry wove over towards us. Again, I waved my arms and gestured- slow down! The captain must have thought I was having an emergency and came nearer to hear better. I pointed to the water and pantomimed diving. He nodded in understanding and turned away. Whew! Then Joe disappeared.

The face of a hero relieved to be out of the shark and sh%# infested harbor.

I looked and looked again yet saw no shadow and no bubbles. I scrambled out of the dinghy and onto the deck. I ran to the port side. There was Joe, almost under the next boat. Apparently the current had pushed him farther than he thought. Twenty minutes or so in, as he scoured the bottom waters where we thought the phone arced, Joe spied it, picked it up and tossed it into the bottom of the dinghy. It was still on, telling the time, our granddaughter’s sweet smiling face on display.

Joe quickly exited the water and called for a change of clothes. He sped off to shower and rinse the equipment, a bottle of rum tucked under his arm to thank Chuck. I worked to dry out my phone, using a handheld vacuum and placing it in a plastic bag of silica gel packets. I’m writing on that same phone now! While it seems a small miracle that the phone still works after sitting in 12 feet of water for more than six hours, the true story to us, is the power of community. Our need was answered almost immediately.

I also knew everyone in the harbor knew about the saga, so I thanked Muffin and Chuck during the cruisers net the next morning while we were pierside at the fuel dock ready to depart. “Isn’t community great?” the host responded. She also quipped that “everyone” wondered how it all turned out. Word does travel fast.

Celebrating our departure from Hopetown, we dropped the hook in Little Harbour to visit the famous Pete’s Pub and Foundry. The lobster and conch tacos were delicious!

Community IS great! I’m writing this post over several days, finishing it as we are rolling in 1700 feet-or more- of water. We are on day two of our passage to Eleuthera. We have parted ways- for now- from SV Sea Lion and SV Nami. I acutely felt the sadness of departing two nights ago, as we did not have a “proper” good bye as often happens while cruising. Joe dinghied our garbage to SV Sea Lion early Tuesday morning to take to the garbage drop off later that morning(great parting gift, right?). Jill and John still swung by to wave “Aloha” on their way to their morning workout. We planned our departure so that SV Nami could pick up our mooring. Ann Marie and I were able to wave and yell, “ I love you!” to each other as she reached for our mooring, Greg at the helm, grinning, and we drove away. But that’s it.

Dreams do come true! Our feet in the sand..

I will miss our friends. Yet I am very excited about meeting family in Eleuthera next week. I cherish our shared Gulf Stream crossing(next post), happy hours, exploring together. I nicknamed us Triple Threat, the antithesis of who we are, except to Caribbean spiney lobsters and bottles of rum.

There we are on the beach at Powell Cay. Right to left: Jill and John of SV Sea Lion, Joe, Ann Marie and Greg of SV Nami and me.

I was also exhilarated, nervous-and grumpy about the passage. Why, we hardly saw Hopetown! The phone debacle and our need to leave because of impending inclement weather pushed us to go. Immediately. We are also supposed to have some winds filling in, so will get a chance to sail Adiona the way she loves! We are also going towards.. new vistas and new discoveries. We should have a little time to sit on the hook digesting all that happened before the next community forms(our family), the norther blowing around us.

Pause. Rest. Be.

The adventures Sandra and Steve on SV Yonder related of their years of sailing, as well as their helpful advice during happy hour shared on their boat, whetted our appetite once again to push on. Chris Parker’s weather advice helped lessen the sting of leaving. He wrote that if we did not depart yesterday morning, we were unlikely to make Eleuthera for our family gathering.

We hiked to the ruins of the old lighthouse on Little Harbour. The views outside were breathtaking but I love the way the light and shadow play inside. It is slowly returning to the earth.

That’s the way it is out here. There is joy, frustration and sometimes fear- in living at the pleasure of the wind and weather. There are lessons to be learned. There is community and connection to be had within and without.

P.S. Always close your waterproof bag NO MATTER WHAT. You never know what might happen next!