Realizing the Dream By Brenda Brinn selves...every square inch...sometimes dream, and that she was really glad t took us about 10 years to make our more than once. she went along with it, because he dream of cruising full time actually Then there were the looks we got unexpectedly passed away after just happen. Well, it wasn’t so much “our” from servers and patrons at local several months of cruising. With tears dream as my husband’s. But, he was restaurants when we would take a in both our eyes, my resistance to this very good to me and my daughter, break and treat ourselves to lunch in life-altering endeavor gently washed and since this is what would make him an air-conditioned diner or fast food away like a piece of seaweed on the happy, I embraced the dream and joint. There we were in old grimy Atlantic. Even now, when I use my focused on my planning, organizing, work clothes, disheveled hair, no towels, I silently thank that angel-inand jack-of-all-trades apprentice skills makeup, a 5 o’clock shadow on my disguise for saying just what I needed to help make this happen. You see, my to hear to jolt me out of my husband is a man who loves self-induced turmoil. to design and build with his I’m keeping it in the own two hands. I really back of my mind that when I admire that. He had already die I should like to ask God tackled building a house, exactly how many decisions restoring a sports car where did my husband make from he had to buy three other the moment he decided to junkers in order to have the buy this boat until we left parts to complete one, and the dock to cruise. Could it motorcycles. be over a hundred thouThen came the chance to sand? How ‘bout a million? improve a sailboat. Over Sometimes, I could swear I three years, he completely saw steam rising from his restored a 36-foot Morgan brain (just like when the Out Island monohull, which impeller disintegrated and in retrospect was the handsthe port engine overheaton experience he gained ed)—and at the same time, prior to being mesmerized he was exhilarated, focused, by this diamond-in-thetriumphant when his idea of rough catamaran that he The dream, later named Sea Spirit, being realized. how to stretch the ammas came to work on next. Okay, husband’s face and my legs. I wanted and raise the roof came to fruition so this would be another project. Little to explain that we were not homeless. flawlessly, and commiserated over the did either of us realize how extensive We did shower every day. We had all failures, as when it took three tries to and all-consuming a project it would the material objects almost everyone install the salon windows without become. else had—a furnished house, cars, and Frankenstein bolts so they did not leak There were many times during a business. We were just working on or crack. this eight year, slow-motion, our boat. Were they judging me or was Yet, there we were—side by side, rebuild/renovation of our 50-foot I judging me? day after day, week after week, month catamaran, Sea Spirit, that I questioned I can remember one time feeling after month, year after year, until one my sanity of allowing my husband to especially discouraged while I was in day, our “baby” was finally ready to spend every penny we had, the heat the department store buying towels put her beautifully painted black botexhaustion of working in a boatyard in for each cabin’s head. The sales clerk tom back in the water. Now, as we the middle of summer in Florida, sensed I was not as excited as I could cruise in our solid, comfortable, bluebeing covered with sweat, paint, have been when I told her we were water boat, I am grateful beyond epoxy, fiberglass, dust, mold and who renovating a boat for cruising. She told words that we had the perseverance to knows what else. Because, yes, we did me her husband realized the same realize this dream. the vast majority of the work our-
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70 January 2013
SOUTHWINDS
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