Day 381 Powerful Me

 

I know I've said before that you can't capture the beauty of a sunset, that never seems to stop us from trying! We were invited to join friends on their boat for a sunset dinner cruise in Newport, twist my arm. Their boat is docked at the Newport Navy Base, not sure there could be a better mooring location. We all felt the days stresses fade as we left the dock and the six of us sipped espresso martinis and took in the crisp ocean air. A few of us sat on the bow and we navigated through the harbor and along the coastline. Sitting on the bow always brings me back to my childhood days of sailing with my dad. I loved sitting as far up on the bow as he would allow, being sprayed by the waves and watching the open sea surge all around me. I felt invincible, growing more powerful as we conquered the sea calling on Mother Nature to bring just the right amount of wind for our sails. My dad fed my ego, every time the wind died down he would ask me to work my magic and call on Mother Nature to bring a gust of wind to get us moving. I would walk out as far as I could onto the bow, raise my arms up and have a heart to heart with the powers that be. Not sure if the wind really did pick up or if my dad just pretended it to happen but I always got credit for making it happen. I grew to believe I controlled the wind, sunshine and that I had a special connection to the earths powers, thanks to my dad. I'm still not convinced he was wrong, after all, every time I asked, our sails bent a bit more and we moved along a little faster. We would dock our boat in Jamestown before driving home in my dads Buick Convertible. Over the bridge we would go with me and my siblings standing tall on the floor of the backseats holding on to the front seat as we looked out onto the ocean from the top of the bridge. My dads white convertible had baby blue vinyl seats that often were covered with drips of ice cream as we tried to eat with the wind catching each drip and spraying it against the backseats. My black Raspberry looked particularly nice against the blue seats. It's funny what kids remember, I don't have one single photo of the car, the boat or our days out on the water yet the memories are still fresh in my mind. When my dad passed away his obituary was of course a photo of him sailing, he was smiling ear to ear wearing a blue t-shirt and hat, a picture that captured his joy. In my mind I can still see him watching over me, calling me sweetheart (the only person that ever has) and looking at me in awe of my powers. He would have loved to see me out on the water, even happier that he's still so vivid in my mind and with such love and gratitude for making me feel so strong. Our plans for a sunset cruise had clear skies, perfect weather and a spectacular sunshine, Mother Nature has always listened to me when I'm on the water...my dad told me so!