This week, life aboard Omana has felt like a heightened experience of infinite interruptions, negotiations and redirections (mostly of the kids' energies), with nowhere to go but the boat or a new place that requires spirit of adventure and a lot of co-regulation of the young ones (that looks like snacks, water, play, stories, keeping skin protected from the sun and the no-see-ums, and more.) There have been some tough evenings, like last night when both children were crying in our cabin at bedtime because I wasn't being patient and slow and gentle in my reading (getting them into bed had taken the last of all of those energies in me and I was practically fuming.) David took over from me while I took a few minutes to recharge in the dinette (living area) of the boat. I don't like when things get dark like that, it takes a lot of work not to be hard on myself. It was a helpful low though: today we are talking about how to create routines where the children are at the center of our planning as much as possible, particularly looking for other families boating around. I’m also working towards taking some time to myself daily.
I share these details because they are a large part of being on Omana. This adventure doesn't feel like a vacation, more like an intensified version of being with family, with the added incognita of… everything else. So much comes up of our patterns and tendencies. We are doing well overall, but the need for more community and support is strong for me.
Apart from managing all the emotional turmoil above, over the last few days we have had two special walks. We went back to Lameshur Bay, where we had been earlier in our travels, and took a very ambitious hike in search for some ancient petroglyphs on the island of St. John. Spoiler: we took a wrong turn and didn't make it to the petroglyphs. But I am grateful for David’s leadership in taking our family on land adventures. He provides 90% of the enthusiasm and activation energy to get us going, as well as the physical power to carry Sasha when he’s tired. Here are some wonderful plants and animals we saw on our way, as well as a couple of views of Lameshur Bay.
It took us two hours round trip. Sasha was carried by David for most of it!and by myself for a good uphill chunk. Ruben walked and walked —it’s delightful to have him along on these hikes. We were quite tired the next day, but luckily we met with a fun family with 3 children and Ruben and Sasha were off our hands playing with water guns and swimming in the water for hours. (This is the experience I want to repeat over and over and over again.)
The second special walk was also spearheaded by David, curious to visit the ruins of the Annaberg Sugar Plantation. We anchored at Francis Bay once again and made our way by foot to the ruins of the sugar plantation.
Seeing these ruins reminds me of how I have a minimal understanding of the role played by colonization and enslavement in this part of the world. Walking among the sleeping quarters of the (at one point) more than 600 enslaved people on the plantation was deeply sad, it reminded me of a cemetary. We learned that the violence also happened to the land itself, as sugar cane was actually brought over by the colonizers, who built terracing to grow it. The land on St. John is actually very rocky, so the only way for the sugar cane to remain alive was through constant watering and fertilizing (mostly done by enslaved women and children.)
The hills around the ruins are now green with plants that have taken over the terraces, but we also learned that most of the old growth was harvested by the British and others, who used precious woods like mahogany for trade and other wood to build and to repair boats. So much violence on the land. I was grateful for the two National Park volunteers we met who shared some of this history, as well as some book titles and information about how the factory worked (this was the only factory who produced all three products of sugar cane: raw sugar, molasses, and rum.) Wendy, one of the volunteers, reminded me of the website slavevoyages.org. If you haven’t seen this timelapse of boats carrying enslaved people across the Atlantic, it’s a powerful visual representation of that heartbreaking traffic. Seeing Annaberg also made me reflect on the plight of sugar consumption that we have in our world today. My heart aches at the thought of the extended suffering caused by an activity so violent at its very core.
Today we left the USVI and came to the island of Tortola in the British Virgin Islands. The crossing had some really intense waves and wind, we had to motor all the way up. Sasha was ecstatic, holding on to a tiny speaker that played a theme song from "Pirates of the Caribbean" on repeat. Ruben spent the crossing lying in the dinette, studying his favorite tuna drawing. We went through a ridiculously long customs process (thank you Michelle and Olivier who were able to stay behind as we brought our children over to a tiny Italian restaurant for lunch. If you're ever in Road Town we recommend "Fantasia Giorgio's." Strange name, but good Italian food with a chef/owner from Milano.)
There have been some lovely evenings filled with music. Ruben and Olivier are going strong with a guitar&cello version of "Angel from Montgomery." I’ve attempted to pick up the ukulele and sing and play some, with very kind and supportive crew around me. Tomorrow is David's birthday and I'm hoping to attempt another cake on the boat. I've been watching him learn to be on the boat more and more and I feel moved by his focus and progress. I’m also grateful for his steadiness and ability to collaborate and plan with grace and deep calm. Sometimes I look at him at the helm in disbelief. 15 years ago I would not have imagined to see him so connected to wind and water.
Thank you for reading — we miss you. Please send us emails with news if you get a chance. We would love to hear from you.
With love,
Bici
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