What makes you spring out of bed in the morning? Is it travel, quilting, or a team sport like pickleball? What energizes you? Is it gardening, painting, reading, woodworking, music, baking or coffee and conversation? What do you love to do so much the “journey” is more important than the “destination?” Is it “forest bathing” or training for a race? Maybe it’s writing for the sheer joy of getting your thoughts on paper. Or maybe it’s letting the breeze catch your sails and take you where they will.

I recently interviewed a couple who have a passion for sailing. Mary and Bill are retired and love spending time on their 31’ sloop, called Puffin. They often plan overnights on it so they can leisurely take in the beauty of The Apostle Islands or stop off at Isle Royale, a national park island in Lake Superior.

Bill tells a charming story of getting to watch two bull moose on the far shore of Isle Royale as they ate seaweed off the bottom of the bay. Later, he and his fellow sailors carried the dinghy down a short path through the woods to Siskwit Lake where they paddled out to the large island. They did this so they could say they were on an island, in a lake, on the largest island in the largest of the great lakes.

Bill and Mary sometimes have an agenda when they’re following their passion, but many times they just let the breeze take them for a peaceful journey, enjoying the gentle sound of the lapping water against the boat, the creaking of rigging, and the pleasant rippling of the sails. Bill said that as night falls, life’s pace slows down. A person can’t tell where the sky stops and where the stars begin. “It feels like you can reach out and touch them. It’s just amazing.”

Mary explained that sailing is 90% calm and peaceful, and the other 10%, well you can imagine. Since they don’t have a satellite phone, calling the Coast Guard isn’t always an option. Bill told the story of being out on the boat with its 54’ metal mast during a lightning storm. They were never struck, thank goodness. I shudder to imagine what would have happened if they were.

Mary told of another scary time when Bill, their son, and friends were out sailing and Bill didn’t check in at the designated time. She didn’t want to bother the Coast Guard, but her paranoia kept mounting and she finally placed the call. They asked her for various phone numbers and kept trying them. They finally got through to Mary and Bill’s son. “Your mom is wondering where you are,” a member of the Coast Guard said. “She expected a phone call from your dad.” When questioned, Bill sheepishly explained he’d forgotten to call. Bill concluded the story with a chuckle. “‘We’ll probably get a call from Mom’ has become a classic family punch line.’”

Mary fascinated me with her descriptions of learning the skills of sailing. She’s able to perform tasks such as tacking (turning the bow into the wind) and jibing (turning the back of the boat into the wind). The couple’s skills have also allowed them to feel confident enough to rent sailboats in exotic settings. I savored their descriptions of them sailing along the British Virgin Islands, anchoring at ports where they could snorkel in the clear, turquoise water.

Sailing has drawbacks, too, and when asked, Bill replied that you can’t be in a hurry. If you’re becalmed, you aren’t going to make much progress. But I think that’s okay. Like many of our passions, sailing shouldn’t focus on the destination. Sometimes in life, we’re meant to simply appreciate the moment, sit back, and enjoy the ride.