Adrift

It’s late afternoon. Our journey starts in the Charleston Harbor. It’s a beautiful day. Our passage awaits.

Jon and I settle into a comfortable spot. Introductions are made, and without further delay, The Pride, ready to burst from her moorings, is released. The riggings are pulled and sails are cast to fly off into the gentle breezes.  The Pride stretches out to find the ancient rhythm of the sea.

Adrift in the salty waters of the harbor, we watch the shoreline slowly recede from our view. As the land starts to fade, the stress rolls away like the waters that pass beneath us. For I am here with my love. He sits beside me and smiles. We drift along the careless wind, easily, happily, in love.  Our day on the sea is a birthday present for both of us.

My handsome husband assists the crew with the sails and I watch his strong arms tugging on the ropes. Knowing that he is loving every moment at sea as much as I.

We have visitors. The dolphins are here to play. They glide through the waters catching the last rays of light, frolicking and singing their songs to us. I wonder if they are as curious about us as we are about them. How I long to reach out and touch their silky smooth bodies and let them know they’ve made a friend.

The clanking of the riggings against the mask seems to have made time stand still, the gentle ringing has suspended time as if in a dream, a dream that we never want to wake from. For this drifting paradise that my love and I share is so timeless. So wonderful.

The sun starts to slink down into the city, out of view. Charleston’s skyline is center stage. The sky becomes an explosion of color as the blues fade to purple, magenta, orange, and then a fiery red. Nature at it’s best. The clouds try to capture it’s magnificent beauty, holding on to the moment, attempting to steal one more glance of God’s awesome work. But the sun waits for no one, and slips away.

The breeze blows across my face, smoothing the lines of stress until they fade away like the sun.  My lungs fill with the salty fresh air and are reborn. The gentle knocking of the waters on the bow sing to my heart. He feels it too. I can see the lightness it brings to his soul. His eyes dance with the rhythm of the waves.

We watch as our boat makes a turn and we start heading back. How we long to stay here with our new friends, adrift in paradise. For the wind has learned our names, and the sails have captured our hearts.

(Charleston, SC trip April 2006)