Day 119

I went sailing today for the first time since Damian died. It felt good to be back on the water again. I do not, however, feel the need to go sailing back home on Lake Lanier. Anywhere but there…

When discussing what we wanted to do while we are in Sarasota, Dawn and I had talked about renting a boat for an afternoon. Here’s the twist though – we were looking at renting a motorboat! That is SO not us. Last Sunday I went as far as trying to reserve one for an afternoon but that didn’t work out because the boats were already booked for this weekend. It was probably for the best since it was really windy today. As such, the waves on Sarasota Bay were big and plentiful – not ideal conditions in an open motorboat. At least not if you want to stay dry. The sailboat we were on was much better suited to today’s conditions, however, so staying dry was not an issue.

I’m not sure how Damian would have felt about today’s cruise. He probably would have enjoyed being on the water but I think he would also have been bored. Not exhilarating enough to hold his attention. After the first hour or so I could see him putting his nose into his phone and only occasionally coming up for air. I might have been able to keep him engaged a little longer if our captain, Charlie, would have allowed him to drive. But I think that he would still have gotten bored after a while. Charlie let me drive the boat for most of the day. I enjoyed it but, admittedly, also missed some of the exhilaration that comes with racing or at least being on a boat that feels fast. The boat today felt slow. It didn’t help that we had a reef in the main (sail) and a small headsail. Put another way, we didn’t have enough sail up to get the boat to move as fast as it is capable of going. No matter, it was still relaxing. Oh, and we got to see a couple of dolphins on the way out of the marina so, you know, bonus. 

The best part of today was that I got to go sailing with Dawn. Having hung up her racing gloves many years ago, Dawn doesn’t sail that much any more since almost all the sailing we do at the club is racing. I know that she misses it so it was great to see her back on a boat today. I could tell that she was elated to feel the wind on her face and didn’t mind at all the occasional splashes coming over the bows – we were on a 30 foot cruising catamaran – even when they got her wet. She keeps telling me that our next boat is “…going to be mine.” As in it will be her boat. I hear you, Poodle, and I want that for you, too. I loved seeing you be happy today. It brought me a lot of joy to see you like this. Just be patient with me a little longer, but I promise that we will make it happen. 

April 8, 2022 – Dawn enjoying a relaxing afternoon sailing on Sarasota Bay

 


 


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