On Being Broken

Right now, our confidence in the boat is on the upswing, since we have a better idea of the impact of our coolant leak. Now it's more of an annoyance rather than a serious concern. But a few days ago, at the first sign of the leak, my heart sank. Whenever some mechanical problem comes up with a boat, you start running through the scenarios for what it means for your trip. If the boat is truly broken, you could be stuck somewhere for a long while getting parts and assistance to fix it. In a really bad case, your trip could be over.

We have been traveling with friends, Raul and Valerie, who have a similar boat, down the ICW, so we've had the benefit of some camaraderie while we share the challenges of keeping a vessel moving. Something Raul said to me the other day, stuck with me: "When the boat is broken, I'm broken". That really summarizes the mixture of bad feelings that flood across you when something breaks. It's a mix of trepidation about what will be your new situation and whether you can continue your trip, and a bit of shame about your boat preparation before the start of the trip.

Somehow, you have to let go of the broken feeling, knowing full well that boats break. They break a lot. I don't think I've ever done a trip without some mechanical failure. I'm still working on accepting these setbacks, and obviously, it's a little easier now that the outlook is improving. It's time to take a few deep breaths and keep pushing forward.