A WISE MAN ONCE SAID
THE TWO BEST DAYS OF A SAILOR’S LIFE IS THE DAY THEY BUY A BOAT AND THE DAY THEY SELL THEIR BOAT.
I NEVER QUITE UNDERSTOOD THIS OLD SAYING UNTIL I MADE THE DECISION TO LEARN HOW TO SAIL. IT ALL HAPPENED QUITE SERENDIPITOUSLY.
Since my childhood growing up on the Southern California coast, I have always had a love for the water. I used to deep-sea fish with my father and obsess over what new creatures I could discover. My wanderlust led me to join the U.S. Navy in 2002 where I sailed the high seas on my steel chariot. It was then, out in the open ocean with no land in sight and just the sound of small waves caressing the hull, that I knew I had found my home.
Upon release from the Navy, I traveled to Costa Rica where I enjoyed mornings surfing on the sapphire-hued waves and afternoons reading in the shade of the rainforest canopy. I had no idea that one of these reads would change my life. It was called Maiden Voyage by Tania Aebi. Tania was the first and youngest woman (at the time) to single-handedly circumnavigate the globe. Her stories were so marvelous and inspiring that when I returned to Idaho, I immediately signed up for sailing lessons at North Idaho College.
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On the first day of class, before we learned anything about the terminology or idiosyncrasies of sailing, our instructor took my classmates and I out for a cruise on a little catamaran on Lake Coeur d’Alene. The boat sat about 30 feet up from the waters edge. I studied it intently, imagining the adventures this little object made of fiberglass, canvas, and lines could allot me.
We were instructed to push the vessel through the sand to the lake. As the bow of the boat began to float, a few people hopped on, and then with one last shove, the little catamaran was free of her sandy shackles and the remaining sailors jumped onboard. We were off! Well, not quite yet – we needed to hoist the sails. The instructor ordered me to grab the main halyard and start pulling. As I tugged on the line, the brilliant rainbow-colored main sail unfolded along the white mast. Once the main sail was in position, the instructor pushed the tiller to steer the boat slightly away from the wind. Within an instant the sail filled out, the boat tilted to one side, and we began to swiftly sail away from land. We were probably only going three knots, but to me we were flying and it was pure exhilaration!
To describe the feeling of sailing that day is to describe ecstasy. I had fallen deeply in love.
This wasn’t going to be another hobby. I had found my true passion. We all have something in our lives that define us whether it be keeping fit, being a parent, owning a restaurant, or painting. For me, sailing was my definition. Within a year, I acquired my first boat and began giving lessons to anyone that wanted to learn. My boat was my refuge, my companion, my Shangri La; she was the friend I couldn’t wait to see.
I will not say we never had quarrels, however. Boats have a reputation for being difficult and expensive to maintain. Most experienced sailors chuckle when one complains about the upkeep and say, “Well, you know what ’boat‘ stands for, right? Bust Out Another Thousand.” I learned this the hard way when my first boat sank in her slip due to a faulty bilge pump during a particular rainy winter in Seattle. That was a hard pill to swallow, but I was determined to learn and move on to another boat.
Today, I am the proud owner of my third sailboat. With almost a decade of sailing under my belt, I have had some of the most thrilling experiences of my life, have run across some of the most interesting people, and have seen some of the most beautiful views imaginable. This year I will be tacking on yet another experience that will likely include impressive people and views. Like my muse, Tania Aebi, I will be taking on a major sail of my own throughout the Caribbean. This has been a dream of mine since that fateful day under the rainforest canopy. The idea that all of this came about due to a book never ceases to amaze me.
Now that I am a full-fledged sailor, I will agree with the old wise man: one of the best days of a sailor’s life is the day they buy a boat. N
However, if sailing is your true passion, the other best day of a sailor’s life are those days the wind picks up their sails and moves them to places unknown. It is just you, the wind, and the water. The purest feeling of freedom I have ever felt.
By Meegan Corcoran
As Featured In: Summer/Fall 2015