These joys of mine

Tuesday, October 23rd, 2007

Anchored outside of Annapolis, our morning has been rather full of slow yawns and shy stretching. After a rather crazy season of madcap sailing and whirlwind port stops, all of a sudden we have a loose schedule that allows for some meandering. Late breakfast today with no desperate need to haul anchor and get out of here; instead, the crew is chatting away about the cold we all have, about cheap rolling tobacco and the military boats that are skirting about us. Yesterday Meg came down the companionway, laughter all twinkling around her, shouting out how hilarious the boys were being. With piecrust on my hands, I stumbled up and there, down in the headrig were the laughingest group of sailors that I've seen in a long time. Kemper, Charlie, Freeman, Rhys; all were down there with their feet in the water, splashing and laughing like kids. I ran and got my camera, wanting to capture their happiness, to bottle it up in a photograph so I can uncork it later in life and breathe in the moment again. It seems like it's been a long time since we played on the boat and the childlike wonder and timelessness of the moment... all that I love were there in that moment. In retrospect, I should have jumped in there too, but for my pink skirt and the apple pie waiting for a topcrust, I probably would have. You know, I'm learning that there is joy and abandon not just in running around like a kid (or a hobo, a hiker, a ski-bum... an free spirited artist...) Part of the joy is in being who you are with all of the responsibilities intact; being who you are, thankful and in the moment, whether you are a goofy boy climbing trees or a woman with laundry to fold. Once again these thoughts of being, of is-ness. By the way, the apple pie was tremendous.