1 Year, 365 Days, 8760 Hours, 4 Countries, Numerous Cities, A Few Blunders, Many Successes, Countless Sunrises and Sunsets, A Handful Of Times I Wanted To Give Up, Copious Days I Wouldn’t Have Wanted To Be Anywhere Else

I never used to be someone who celebrated milestones, I lived with the philosophy, that it’s the little everyday events that count, not the big grandiose achievements. I now know that all milestones are worthy of recognition, and complacency in the joy of the journey cannot happen. Celebrations rejuvenate me by making me excited about our next steps, gives me an opportunity to reflect, and solidify the learning I have been a part of. Maybe that’s why I love to take endless pictures of friends and family, events and locations so I can remember to celebrate each day good and bad. Today, I want to take this blog to celebrate the past year.

Hard to believe, but on June 15, 2014, it was our one year anniversary as live aboards. I don't think of us as live aboards, but as cruisers because after a little more than two months on board, we threw off the dock lines and started our cruising adventure.  So one year ago this journey started and what a year it has been. 

I want to thank Marc for so many things. Mostly for making me the victim of a crazy cruiser husbands dream and drawing me into his dream. Pushing me to live outside my comfort zone. As you may know this trip hasn’t always been easy for me and some days have just been downright hell, but pushing me gave me the opportunity to explore people, places and things that I may never have had the opportunity to see any other way. And what a fun guy you have been exploring with.

Wow, have we learned a lot from many people, including ourselves, our success and our blunders. Sometimes we learned the lesson the painful way, sometimes the painless. We learned so much from the generosity of other cruisers and friends sharing their knowledge experience and rum.

I want to recognise all the people we have met along the way. You start out the day in some distant port unsure of where to get food, water, fuel, then complete strangers invite you into their home (boat) for sundowners and food, before the end of the night you have become life long friends. The sad thing is often once they have gone you may never see them again.   

This year has been emotionally and financially tough. I miss my kids and have had random bouts of homesickness, I have learned to live in a space smaller than the family room of the house we sold, I sleep in an awkward bed, cherish fresh water, monitor the clothes my captain wears and complains if he can’t make the same pair of shorts stand up on their own before I have to hand wash them, I’ve learned to cook with  foreign foods purchased using sign language because I don’t speak the local language. But most of all, I’ve learned that most days I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else and I am genuinely grateful and excited about the progress we’ve made and our next adventures together. I recognised the joy, the learning, the growth and the new reality we have created together.

This anniversary makes me look forward to the next.