Coconut Watch
Location: Underway to Mauritius
As we’ve spent yet another great day on the Indian Ocean, I am constantly reminded of my favorite poem, Invictus by William Ernest Henley. While the whole poem feels like a constant theme in my life, certain lines and portions of the poem have always spoken to me differently depending on what is happening in my life at the time. The lines that keep coming to me recently are the beginning ones: “Out of the night that covers me, black as the pit from pole to pole, I thank whatever gods may be, for my unconquerable soul”. This voyage, and particularly this long passage, has been hard for me. From dealing with different personalities to having to wake up in ungodly hours every night, to even having super limited personal space, I’ve been struggling quite a bit. However, I find solace and strength in this poem and these lines especially right now. They remind me of my strength a nd ability to do hard things. While I understand it sounds like this journey isn’t fun from the way I just described it, this is truly the experience of a lifetime. I feel blessed and privileged to be going through the struggles I am feeling right now. From spending sunsets on the bow, watching and wondering what comes next for me and this journey, to laughing at those ungodly hours about the most stupid and random things, I find more small things every day to be appreciative of and to enjoy.
We passed our halfway point in our journey a couple of days ago, and everyone is meshing really well. I feel like my place with everyone is becoming more of a solid and important thing to me. I value who I am on this boat. In the forever wise words of William Ernest Henley, which I’m paraphrasing btw, my soul, that I am forever the captain and master of, is unconquerable. Being on the beautiful boat that Argo is, I have had more time to self-reflect and to try and change things I don’t love about myself than I ever had before. I can feel myself becoming a more positive and appreciative person. I can feel my understanding of others grow, and my empathy has very much increased.
Even through the spats and small issues I’ve faced on this large but also so small boat, I can truly say I love each and every one of the people on board. I know so much about every one of them, and I feel that even though we’ve known each other for such a short period of time, I am closer with these people than may other people I’ve met in my life. Watching the sunrises/sets almost every day, and thinking through my day and the conversations and interactions I’ve had, is such a simple thing that I never thought I would enjoy so much. I have had some personal and deep conversations with Nacho, the staff member, throughout this journey, and I feel like he has helped me through my struggles here and helped me find myself and my place on the boat. Liko, I love you so much, and I don’t spend a single day not thinking about you. When I see the beautiful sunsets or the stars in the sky, the moon, or even the huge rolling waves, I am reminded of the feelings I feel when I am near you. I can’t wait to see you again. Mom and Dad, being here has made me realize how lucky I am to have people like you guys in my corner throughout my life. You guys are a constant rock and examples of how I want to live my life. To my siblings, I love you guys. You guys are and always have been my best friends. I can’t wait to catch up with you guys about everything I’ve been missing in your lives. Hoku and Kike, I know you guys are being crazy and weird and so cute. I can’t wait to snuggle my puppies again.