Life is Sailing

A place of life exploration, sailing journeys, and piece of thought

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about

I am a woman who loves beauty and fun. I sail, read, play games, learn instruments (piano, flute, ukulele, tin whistle, Scottish drums, harmonica), hike, sing, Pickleball, explore, and write. My greatest joy is playing or exploring with my five children and husband. My greatest peace is at the piano or sailing. At the center and surrounding it all is my Savior Jesus Christ.
  • Today I challenged myself to 365 days of writing for no less than ten minutes a day and to take a picture of the location.

    Learning to See

                “Learning to see.”  This phrase concept was broached in the book Rembrandt Is in the Wind.  What does it mean to “learn to see”?  Our eyes help us navigate life safely, avoiding danger.  They help us find what we need.  They filter in beauty, pain, comfort.  Seeing is one of the five senses God gave us to engage with His world.  Isn’t it something we naturally do every waking moment… use our eyes to see? 

                Yet, “learning to see” requires an intentionality beyond what comes naturally to most of us.  We open our eyes to the minute, we look up toward the heavens and observe, we train our brains to recognize shapes and patterns.  It is a slowing down, a mapping of the environment, a taking in of the whole experience.  For me, learning to see involves more than just my sense of sight.  It is the sounds, smells, touch of an environment that allow me to truly see.  When I look back on pictures I have taken, it is not merely the visible image that my mind recalls, it is the entire sensory experience.  The more I choose to be in the moment, experiencing with all my senses, the more a photo brings to my mind and heart what I experienced. 

                Due to my husband’s job, we move locations a lot.  Learning to see in each new environment has become a goal of mine.  I learn the smells, the sounds of daily activities, the feel of the air and wind, the look of the people, plants, and animals.  It takes time, and often I am impatient, but it is worth the investment.  It changes me, learning to see these different cultures and places.  It rounds out my rigid framework of life.  Oh, to explore more of this incredible world and people, learning to see.

  • Today I challenged myself to 365 days of writing for no less than ten minutes a day and to take a picture of the location.

    It was a day of light wind…

                The wind is light today, but there are sailboats out there in the Chesapeake.  The day began chilly and overcast.  Now the sun shines through the clouds and wind ripples are seen across the water, gentle breezes urging the shore-dweller onto the water for adventure.  Dare I go?  Hop into a sailboat and whisk away a landlubber friend of mine into the intoxicating world of sailing which I cannot escape??  Water. She beckons.  She calls.  Ride the water, feel the breeze, however light or strong.  Come play, learn, and grow.  Face those fears.  Join those who play among the rigging and embrace the kiss of the wind.

Leader
Will you lead through the fire?
What when the fire dies?
Who are you leading and do you know your why?
Do you promote yourself above others?
Or do you look and see others, weaving talents together to yield a cloth of multiplied strength?
Deceptive is the idea that the best leader is one most skilled in his craft (be it flying a plane, designing technology, etc).
Perhaps leading others is a skill in itself.  
Look just below the highest performing worker… for the one who watches, observes, encourages, challenges the team to grow.
Can an intrinsically skilled leader of people lead in multiple contexts, regardless of his/her specific job training?
Leader, lead people and know why you lead.