How often do you stick out your hand and introduce yourself to your fellow humanity? How many times have you found the diamond in the rough because you did?
It was the summer of 2008. We were still new to cruising with a bit of seasoning tossed on top. We weren’t yet comfortable with stopping at all the boats in an anchorage to say hi, but we did.
Little did we know, after four years, what kind of influence the crew of Liahona would have on our lives. Before we knew it, we’d agreed to meet them later on someone else’s boat to watch the local sailboat races. Thus we added another new crew to our list of friends.
Over the years we’ve met many cruisers and added many gems to our collection, but I can’t think of any that shine so brightly. When asked what makes them special I have to say, it’s their knack for helping to expand everyone else’s circle of friends.
They seem to know how to introduce you to just the right people that will help you along the way. They were instrumental in pushing us to leave the comfort of the East coast and making sure we had the right information to make our journey south a smooth one.
Recently, they put together a hog roast in paradise and invited their friends which of course expanded our circle of friends exponentially. In the process they introduced cruisers to a small Tiki bar and the proprietors. Every afternoon we’d gather to sip a cold drink and socialize with the locals and each other. Will we come back to this anchorage on our travels? Will we grace Black Boy and Debbie’s restaurant again? You bet.
I’m really glad we stopped by that boat on that particular day. I hope we can touch the lives of those we know in similar ways.
How often do you introduce your various friends to one another? How small can we make the world because we not only want to share ourselves, but our friends as well?
I love meeting new people. You just never know when you will make a new friend. 🙂 And of course I like my friends to be friends!
What a great story, Nancy! I’d think your lifestyle is one of extremes? Either opening yourself up to meet lots of people or becoming quite isolated, even if not be design.
I’ve thought about how I isolate myself during heavy work periods and really stop trying to meet people or engage with the people I already know. Not a good recipe because when you need someone to chat with or grab lunch, then the foundation isn’t there.
As always, nice post, Nancy. 🙂
Er, mixed metaphor anyone? Just caught that. . . recipe/foundation. LOL.
What a cool post, Nancy! I love meeting new people for exactly those reasons ~ you just never know who needs to know whom. It’s a huge world, but pretty small when you get down to the humanity of it. Of course, hearing everyone’s stories is pretty terrific as well. I’m glad you’re making loads of friends on your travels and sharing them with us!
You prove the point so easily, Nancy. This is what life is all about!
Wonderful post, Nancy! As a young boy I always daydreamed about meeting people from different places and now as an older guy I’m doing just that. For me it’s like a childhood dream come true. I can say I have friends from almost every continent and I am the much better for knowing them. And there are those that live another dream of mine. You’re one of them!