Introduction
I’m a sailor. That means I spend a lot of time on the water and a lot of time thinking about what it all means. Like you, I’m sure, I’ve often wondered: How can something so vast be so small? What does it mean to live “by the sea”? And how do these two things intertwine? The truth is that sailing makes life richer and fuller no matter how much time you spend on it. It’s not just about being out on the ocean or learning how to be patient (though both of those things are great), but also how living by the sea makes us pay attention to what’s around us—and then do something with it!
A sailor learns patience.
A sailor may have to wait for the wind to pick up before they can sail out of port. They may have to wait for the tide to change so that their boat will be able to sail into open water and away from rocky shores.
Sailors also have to take into consideration other sailors who might be sailing in the same area at the same time, which means waiting until your ship has passed safely out of range of an oncoming vessel before you can maneuver your own boat safely through that area.
This is all part of learning patience while sailing, which will help you in other areas of your life as well!
A sailor steps out of his comfort zone.
When you’re a sailor, you’re always learning new things. Whether it’s a new sail or maneuver, or how to prepare for your passage, there’s always something to learn. Sailors also are in an ever-changing environment because they’re traveling to new places and meeting new people all the time. They’re never stagnant; they’re always moving forward—and sometimes backward! But because sailors’ lives depend on their boat’s ability to move through water with ease and grace, they can’t afford mistakes or laziness.
So whether you’re sailing solo or with others on board, the experience will push you out of your comfort zone and into a place where everything is unfamiliar except for one thing: yourself.
A sailor sees and hears the world in new ways.
A sailor sees and hears the world in new ways.
The sea is a quiet place, except for the sounds of nature: wind, water, birds and animals. After being on land for a while, these noises can seem loud—especially if you’re used to living in an urban environment with constant noise pollution. But when you’re used to sailing day-in and day-out, these sounds become your music—the backdrop of your days at sea. You come to appreciate them for what they are: what makes sailing so special! And if you ever get tired of listening to all that natural beauty? There’s always someone else on board who’d be happy to talk about those things instead.
The sailor never truly escapes his past.
You cannot escape your past. You can only learn from it.
The more you try to run away from a problem, the closer it will come to you until it is right in front of your face, ready for resolution.
The sailor never truly escapes his past, but rather learns from how he has been shaped by it and uses that knowledge in order to shape his future into one filled with promise and hope at every turn.
A sailor gets to eat seafood more often.
Seafood is a staple of the sailor’s diet. Seafood is easy to store and transport, it’s healthy and nutritious, and it’s available in many places around the world.
In fact, some believe that eating seafood regularly can actually help you live longer!
The science behind this theory may be a little complicated—I’m not going to pretend like I understand all of it—but one thing’s for sure: If you want to live longer than most people do these days (and who doesn’t?) then make sure you eat your fair share of fish every day!
A sailor knows better than to fight the tide.
When you’re out at sea, you can’t fight the tide. It’s too powerful. You have to learn to work with it, not against it. The same thing is true in life: there are certain natural forces that are just too strong for us to overcome on our own, but when we learn how to harness them and make use of their power rather than try and stand up against them, we can accomplish much more than if we were stubbornly trying to fight them all the time.
When you know how to ride waves of change (or tides) in your own life with grace and ease instead of resisting their pull or being dragged along helplessly by them, then you’ll be able to sail freely towards your destination without getting lost or caught up in currents that carry no profit for yourself or others.
A sailor knows there’s safety in numbers.
There’s safety in numbers. Sailing is no different.
You don’t have to go through it alone, and we certainly don’t recommend that you do. The more people you bring on board with you, the better your experience will be: there are always more hands to help out; if something goes wrong, there are more pairs of eyes looking for a solution; if your boat is damaged or lost at sea, there will be others who can help get you back home safely. That’s why one of the reasons we like to sail in groups: they give us flexibility when planning our activities and offer safety from bad weather conditions (if everyone has an anchor light on their boat).
That last point brings up another important reason why having friends on board makes sense—safety! Our club has an emergency life raft onboard each vessel so that when things go wrong, everyone gets off safely without having to try to swim away from danger first.
A sailor knows time is relative, and that time is a question of speed.
Time is relative. Have you heard that before? It’s true. A sailor knows time is a question of speed and passage, not calendar or clock. During our voyage we were constantly asked about how long we had been at sea. We would answer, “4 months; 3 weeks; 9 days…” but no one ever seemed satisfied with those answers because they made it sound like our time was measured in land-based hours and minutes. Land-based people (as much as I love them) see things differently than sailors do: they look at their watches and calendars to get a sense of how much time has passed while they are on land—not while they are in motion, which is what we were doing during our voyage.
The sailor’s clock moves at a different pace than the land-based clock does because it follows the sun rather than moving with us through space.* The sun rises and sets according to latitude while clocks tick away all over earth regardless of location—east or west (or north or south). So when you think about what happens when sailors set out across an ocean—for example: setting out from port in California bound for Hawaii—it doesn’t matter whether your watch reads 5pm, 10pm or even midnight since sunrise will always happen four hours after sunset regardless of where you are located on earth’s surface!
The sea has a way of making you feel at home, no matter who you are.
The great thing about the sea is that it makes you feel at home, no matter who you are. You can be yourself on the ocean, and the serenity of being out there will bring out a different side of your personality than what you show in daily life. The sea offers a place where you can find peace and tranquility when things are going crazy on land.
I’ve sailed at night many times now and each time I do it feels like I am sailing into myself; like there is some kind of magic in the air that changes my mood from stressed to relaxed in an instant—even if I am stuck with a bad crew member or two!
Living by the sea means living with the seasons.
One of the things that I love most about sailing is that we have to live by the seasons. Yes, there are always some days in which you can go sailing regardless of what time it is, but if you want to sail on a regular basis and have more than one chance per year to race your boat or compete in an event like Newport-Bermuda or regattas, then you need to pay attention to the weather.
When my husband and I first started sailing together, neither of us had any experience with this kind of thing and we were always wondering why people would get so excited about some weeks being better for sailing than others. We soon learned though! We learned how important it is to know when you’re going out on your boat so that you can be prepared for what may come your way—and this applies whether your destination is only a few miles away or thousands across open ocean!
Sailing with no knowledge at all could leave someone unprepared for conditions such as high winds (which cause waves) or foggy weather (when visibility decreases).
The ocean can be limitless or very, very small, depending on the day – but it’s always ever-changing and ever-present.
The ocean can be limitless or very, very small, depending on the day – but it’s always ever-changing and ever-present.
The ocean is immense, yes. It’s powerful and unforgiving at times. But it’s also beautiful and calming – especially when you’re sitting in your boat with a hot cup of coffee or tea!
Sailing makes life richer and fuller, no matter how much time you spend on it.
If you’re a sailor, sailing is a way of life. You can’t see the world in the same way as those who don’t sail. And if you don’t know anyone who sails, it can be hard to understand what we do and why we do it.
Life is richer and fuller when you live by the sea, whether or not you spend much time on your boat. Every time I step off my boat at home port after weeks at sea I feel more settled than ever before, because every time I think about going back out again – and sometimes even when I don’t think about going anywhere but am just walking along – I remember the joys of being out there with nothing between me and nature but air and water.
Conclusion
So, there you have it: a sailor’s life for me. It’s not about sailing at all times, but about living the way I want to live and doing what makes me happy. For me, that means going out on the water regularly and taking advantage of all it has to offer – from fresh air and sunshine to good food (in moderation), relaxation time spent with family or friends by my side, new sights… and even getting lost every now and then!