Maine Diaries: Second first day at sea
Each spring students from
Maine Maritime Academy
set sail on their training ship the State of Maine
for a two-month cruise. One student, Paul Kemp*, has
agreed to share his experience.
May 18-A weird sense of satisfaction has occurred now that this boat is actually going somewhere. Original suspicions that we were just some type of large float in a parade have been quashed --there is now an unusual roll to the ship and, unless we have spent millions on building a Hollywood backdrop, there is water out there instead of Searsport.
The weather is beautiful and the waves gently brush the side of the boat, removing any traces of the lunches and breakfasts that were projected on her sides by new midshipmen getting used to the sea. Faces are pale and the food often uneaten as crew brace themselves for the next roll. I have found the magical wonders of modern drugs for the first few days of acclimation, and I have been distributing them to those I like in freshmen berthing.
Today I watched the cruise’s first sunset while underway—an experience everyone able to stomach the rolling ship should enjoy. With little to do now aboard the ship, time slows and with it comes a new appreciation for more free time after so many days filled with long hours of grueling work. Out of necessity to attempt to kill the days one by one until we can return home, we find ourselves taking the time to read, to enjoy a sunset, to sit and simply rest during the evenings. But there is also a certain satisfaction now for the tasks we do accomplish, as minor as they may be. We complete our days knowing we have done something with our time, that we have done it with the utmost talent we possess and that we are able to call the project our own.
And at the end of the day, as peace befalls the ship, we all know tomorrow will bring another set of tasks requiring us to either place pride in our work or to choose laziness. We are all learning here on this small steel island. We are learning what it truly means to appreciate work and to take the time to simply sit. Too often we focus so much on our jobs while our world simply passes us by.
Previous posts:
May 5
May 7
May 9
May 10
May 12
May 13
May 17
May 18
*Paul Kemp is a pseudonym. The student has asked that his name be withheld out of respect for those with whom he is sailing.
May 18-A weird sense of satisfaction has occurred now that this boat is actually going somewhere. Original suspicions that we were just some type of large float in a parade have been quashed --there is now an unusual roll to the ship and, unless we have spent millions on building a Hollywood backdrop, there is water out there instead of Searsport.
The weather is beautiful and the waves gently brush the side of the boat, removing any traces of the lunches and breakfasts that were projected on her sides by new midshipmen getting used to the sea. Faces are pale and the food often uneaten as crew brace themselves for the next roll. I have found the magical wonders of modern drugs for the first few days of acclimation, and I have been distributing them to those I like in freshmen berthing.
Today I watched the cruise’s first sunset while underway—an experience everyone able to stomach the rolling ship should enjoy. With little to do now aboard the ship, time slows and with it comes a new appreciation for more free time after so many days filled with long hours of grueling work. Out of necessity to attempt to kill the days one by one until we can return home, we find ourselves taking the time to read, to enjoy a sunset, to sit and simply rest during the evenings. But there is also a certain satisfaction now for the tasks we do accomplish, as minor as they may be. We complete our days knowing we have done something with our time, that we have done it with the utmost talent we possess and that we are able to call the project our own.
And at the end of the day, as peace befalls the ship, we all know tomorrow will bring another set of tasks requiring us to either place pride in our work or to choose laziness. We are all learning here on this small steel island. We are learning what it truly means to appreciate work and to take the time to simply sit. Too often we focus so much on our jobs while our world simply passes us by.
Previous posts:
May 5
May 7
May 9
May 10
May 12
May 13
May 17
May 18
*Paul Kemp is a pseudonym. The student has asked that his name be withheld out of respect for those with whom he is sailing.
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