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Caption: _______ Children of the Tides 20 Days at Sea
Caption: We all come from the sea, but we are not all of the Sea. Those of us who are, we children of the tides, must return to it again and again, until the day we don't come back, leaving only that which was touched along the way. _______ Chasing Mavericks
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Caption: Spending two weeks at the family cabin on Lake Miltona in Minnesota in the summer used to be a fixture on my calendar. Carefree days filled with fun and games, interrupted only by delicious meals. It was a time to relax, rejuvenate and reconnect with those who are near and dear to me. Never missed it, ever. Up until this last July. That’s because I was on assignment, spending 20 days at sea on board the VOR 70 Maserati, delivering the boat from Honolulu, Hawaii to Subic Bay, Philippines.
During this 5500 mile trip, I sometimes thought about the cabin and my family and the joyous times there and the kids’ license to play. All our energy went into using our imagination, spending countless hours building forts, making sand castles, going on grand adventures and, of course, swimming all day. Our minds were busy and our world was full of excitement, wonder and mystery.
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Caption: As we approached the halfway mark of this delivery, the days began to melt into each other, with only a few breaks in the routine: a new cloud formation here, a wind shift there, and little else to distinguish one day from the next. And more importantly, they weren’t in a competition, so they were not under intense pressure.
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Caption: Afternoon Siesta
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Caption: Smoke Break
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Caption: Movie Night
Caption: To find some relief from the heat and to spice up the routine, the Seven Samurai summoned their childhood memories and their imagination to make a pool on the stern out of a spare jib, to string up an awning on the boom for some shade or to rig up a hose as a shower and pretending to be in extreme conditions in the Southern Ocean. In no time flat they turned the good ship Maserati into their jungle gym as they took turns swinging off the halyard, then dragging along in the water, or jumping off the bow to swim to the stern.
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Caption: As I sat and watched and worked the shutter of my camera, I had to smile at these grown men getting in touch with their inner child, using ingenuity and imagination to find a little bit of diversion and entertainment when their job permitted. And inevitably, they included the ocean in their games. It’s the place they came from and the one that keeps calling them time after time.
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