We had our first fellow Whitby 42 owners onboard Akupara today! Denis and Rosario from “Counting Stars”. They are new owners as well and what a pleasure meeting and spending the afternoon with like minded people! It seems that most people who pursue and eventually purchase a boat of this pedigree have somewhat similar dreams, and no matter the specific destination, they all involve bluewater.
Their Whitby is in much better condition than ours is currently but they were extremely gracious and were able to see beyond the dirt and mold and see Akupara in her eventual glory. We eventually went out and had lunch and a beer together and swapped stories of adventures past, both offshore and onshore and our dreams of adventures still to come. Of course it wasn’t long before talk turned to “Blue” jobs and “Pink” jobs, but we had a lot of fun! 🙂
This is what it is all about. Meeting interesting people who share a common goal. It doesn’t matter where you come from or what your background is, whether you are a doctor, lawyer or an Indian Chief, all that matters is that you share a passion.
A lot of us may never realize upon seeing ours dreams fulfilled. It is a sad truth. But ultimately, is it the completion of, or the adventures to get there, and who you get to share it with, that makes for a successful passage?
And since I am being sappy, I want to share my favourite quote.
“To be truly challenging, a voyage, like a life, must rest on a firm foundation of financial unrest. Otherwise, you are doomed to a routine traverse, the kind known to yachtsmen who play with their boats at sea… “cruising” it is called. Voyaging belongs to seamen, and to the wanderers of the world who cannot, or will not, fit in. If you are contemplating a voyage and you have the means, abandon the venture until your fortunes change. Only then will you know what the sea is all about.
“I’ve always wanted to sail to the south seas, but I can’t afford it.” What these men can’t afford is not to go. They are enmeshed in the cancerous discipline of “security.” And in the worship of security we fling our lives beneath the wheels of routine – and before we know it our lives are gone.
What does a man need – really need? A few pounds of food each day, heat and shelter, six feet to lie down in – and some form of working activity that will yield a sense of accomplishment. That’s all – in the material sense, and we know it. But we are brainwashed by our economic system until we end up in a tomb beneath a pyramid of time payments, mortgages, preposterous gadgetry, playthings that divert our attention for the sheer idiocy of the charade.
The years thunder by, The dreams of youth grow dim where they lie caked in dust on the shelves of patience. Before we know it, the tomb is sealed.
Where, then, lies the answer? In choice. Which shall it be: bankruptcy of purse or bankruptcy of life? ”
― Sterling Hayden, Wanderer
