A Circumnavigation of the World by Sailboat

I have disturbed the lives of one million flying fish;
I have witnessed - and often instigated - the wanton destruction of sailboat parts;
I have eaten badly and accumulated so many stomach bugs that they cancel eachother out;
But now, I am drinking champagne and toasting these sins because
I have sailed around the world!

There. I said it. After 360 degrees of longitude and 25,000 nautical miles of ocean, I can finally abuse that last line as often as I like until it seems a mere cliché! But I promise not to; this accomplishment is not something to wear on my sleeve, rather to carry in my back pocket for those days when the challenges of life seem insurmountable.

I have a request: I plan on writing some instructional material on "how to hitchhike by sailboat" and need to find out what questions aspiring hitchhikers would have. Please send your questions to me!

As stated in my previous entry, I want to thank everyone who has followed along through the blog and sent encouraging e-mails over the last 16 months. I would like to dedicate the completion of this adventure in particular to my parents; to my mother for her lasting and loving support, and to my father, who I sense dreamed of sailing across oceans and around distant capes.

Since the adventure was made possible by the support of family and friends, here are a couple of thoughts from the nightwatch:

Our parents give us so much of their lives so that we may accomplish our dreams. Will we provide our own children with enough tools and confidence to follow their own path in life?

Our friends hold the power to strengthen or damage us, and they are equally at our whim. Will we use this power to dominate our peers? Will we overcome our natural instincts of insecurity and jealousy to encourage one another to succeed or just be themselves?

I have been incredibly lucky to have supportive family and positive friends, particularily during a time in my life when I can't easily return the favour. Thanks for responding to e-mails (even though it's easier not to), listening to my latest calamities, saying nice things out of the blue (I don't do that enough myself) or just writing to say, "hey, I was walking home in the snow and thought about you - where in the world are you now and when will you be home?" Current answer is "Panama Canal, and then Toronto in a week".

Anyway, now time for the bad news.. another adventure lies ahead! Remember how you said I should visit sometime? I might hold you to your promise of a couch to crash on and bowl of oatmeal for breakfast! More news on that coming this summer..

See you soon,
Busco Gusto!

Clive

Photos c/o yours truly and Sandrine I.

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