We’ve got a new love in our lives, Hubby and I. When Son when off to college and we became empty-nesters last fall, Hubby and I decided to fill the open time with a new hobby. After a couple of false-starts with gardening and home remodeling (which we mutually determined are really neither our interests nor our forte’s ), we decided to look for something more…fun.
We decided to buy a boat.
Before you tell me the stories of how a boat is really just hole in the water where you put money and that boat stands for bill-out-another-thousand, let me assure you that we have actually already proven both of those axioms.
It is clear from the onset that boat types fit people personality types. There are fast boats that speed through the water and often pull skiers behind them. Folks in a hurry seem to be attracted to these types of boats. We’ve been in a hurry for a long time. I don’t want to be in a hurry now. Now I want to be peaceful. Fast boats that rocket people and things behind them do not seem to be peaceful. I do not see happiness for us with a fast boat.
There are fishing boats, which obviously cater to anglers. The boat is a means to the sport of fishing. Sometimes it’s a little more than that I think, but in general, fishing boats help fisherman to fish. We don’t fish. A fishing boat is an obvious misfit for us.
Enter the sailboat. Sailboats leave a small footprint – very little engine, used primarily to get in and out of the slip. All the rest is wind power. I like that. Sailing requires a new language and a bunch of new skills. Learning keeps us young. I worry about that now, so I like the learning opportunities with sailing. I had never consciously considered in my nearly 50 years, where the wind is coming from. For sailors, that is second nature. There is work involved in sailing, and frankly, it can be hard work. Physical work. Maybe even a means to use Kettle bell muscles?
Most of all though, sailing isn’t a means to an end. It doesn’t enable the sailor to drag a skier. It doesn’t get you somewhere as fast as possible. When you set off to sail, you often aren’t headed anywhere, other than where you already are, sailing. Peaceful. Now that’s a pastime to love.
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