​Thoughts and advice on staying at home: Honesty

So Erick advised last time, “be honest with others.” 

We often hear about people stuck all winter in the artic coming down with “cabin fever.” We can become anxious about our own health or sanity while in isolation.   These days, if we cough, we wonder, “Is this the virus?”  I don’t know about you but every time I hear a description of an illness, I begin to think I have it.

We had been sailing for about two or three days, getting little sleep. We were sailing down the coast of Baja California, surfing down twelve foot waves. Erick, our 14 year old son Tim and I were each taking 4 hour “watches.” At night that meant one of us sailing in the cockpit of the boat, the other two sound asleep below.  My watch in the middle of the night eventually became my favorite time.  I was alone with the boat, the waves and the stars in the sky. But when we first started out, we were all sleep deprived and four hours was a long time to have the helm and hold your family’s fate in your hands. 

The second night out, I began to hear a flute or pipes playing in the distance.  I could almost make out the tune. They sounded like the pipes we had heard in Arizona played by Navaho or Hopi musicians. No one was around. Was I beginning to crack?   Sometimes during the day, I would hear the music, but the other two didn’t act like they heard anything out of the ordinary. I thought I must be losing it, but I didn’t say a word, because I didn’t want the others to worry. 

Finally, I had to mention it to the others in the boat. They needed to know whether they could rely on me or not. I told them, “I think I hear music.”    
Erick and Tim began to laugh nervously. They admitted that they too heard the flautist. What could it be?  We began to explore the sound. It was coming from the tubing  that held up the solar panels. When the wind blew across it just right, it played music. Our boat was singing. 
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We promised to be honest with one another, especially when it came to the safety of the boat.  We learned that honesty is a vital necessity for trust.