Nothing but a dreamer

As a young boy, I was fascinated by anything that floats. When it rained, we used to build small boats with ice-cream sticks and float them down the streams that formed. Running barefooted after our stick boats, life was in the moment, without a care in the world. I was five years old when I took a canoe out early one morning where we were camping. It was still dark, and everyone was sound asleep. I wanted to drop my bait a bit deeper than I could cast, and took my fishing rod with me on the canoe. When I was deep enough, I turned sideways and casted my bait even deeper. In the process I capsized the flat bottomed canoe, heavily dressed with jeans and a jersey. After a few attempts I managed to right the canoe and get up again. Thoroughly drenched I made my way back to shore and rekindled our camp fire, shivering in the icy cold morning air. I removed my wet clothing and hanged them on our washing line, wrapped a towel around me and soaked up the heat from the flames. I was h
ooked,
having survived this little ordeal.

At thirteen I experienced a windsurfer for the first time. Big flat One Design boards were then the thing. I was with some friends at a dam, and was thrilled being able to sail. It took me about half an hour to get to the other side with the wind from behind. My whole being was laughing at this incredible experience. It took me about three hours to sail back to our camp, against the wind. Sunburned, thirsty, hungry, muscles aching, but I was in my happy place, and learned a few valuable lessons.

From then on I read every book I could find on boats. Libraries, bookstores, magazines, whatever I could find. From ancient craft right through to the newest racing craft. It was a whole new world to me, and that's how I wanted to see the world, by boat. I thought I would work for forty years, buy a boat and go sailing. Read somewhere that the nearest thing one can build to a dream is a sailing boat.

I grew up far from the ocean. There was always this incredible yearning for the sea. Every ad on tv with some ocean in was inspiring, every program or movie I had to study, not just watch. Reading Jonathan Livingston Seagull made me reach out for more. I dared to dream. In my mind's eye, I found myself floating on the big blue, gently rising up and down with the swell. Maths class was one of my favorite places to dream, sitting and staring out the window at the clouds. Our maths teacher was not passionate about maths, and neither was I.

My life took saw some highways and byways, and in due time I moved to the coast. Life took a few drastic turns, one thing led to another, and before long, I was out at sea. A friend of mine had a rubber duck and we used to go fishing, launching at the local yacht club. We would be on the water before it got light, and motoring past all the sailing vessels in their berths just added fuel to the fire. Soon I enrolled in a sailing academy, and not long after hopped on a sailing boat, Perola do Mar, to Madagascar. This was in 2000 and I was in heaven. I got injured in Mada, and had to go back home for a while. A few years later I decided to pursue sailing as a career, and have since logged over 270,000nm. Living my dream.

And just when I thought life couldn't get better, I married my dream girl. And I try to figure out how dreams work. The Khoi San have a saying that we are dreams from the great Dreamer who dreams us and everything else into existence.

I hope you also dare to dream, and that your dreams also come true. On our side, we have beautiful sailing conditions and making good miles on our dream boat.

Until the morrow

Paul






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