I have also noticed beauty in the makeshift fix-ups to fences, chairs, just about anything. Functionality is a feature that is in focus here. As we walked into town yesterday we noticed a wheel fastened to a flat frame. Not exactly a wheelbarrow but definitely a mechanism to move desired objects.
I have been trying to sharpen my sense of hearing. Dan and I have moved our sleeping quarters to the bow of the boat again to take advantage of the better air circulation. On clear nights we have the hatch completely open and the screen at least slows down the bugs. When I woke this morning I listened to the symphony that was slowly unfolding. In the stillness before the Trades start to blow I can hear a soft crinkle against Gypsy’s hull. We’re been told it’s the sound of shrimp snapping their claws as they are feeding near the side of the boat. In the distance, if you listen carefully, you can hear the booming of the surf against the reefs outside the harbor. Next, near us, there is a steady, rhythmic sound of water lapping in the stillness that I recognize to be the rowing of an oar; probably one of the locals going out to fish in the early morning calm. From the direction of land over the mangroves is the crow of a rooster, several times, and next the deep bellow of a cow, maybe being rounded up for milking. The sound of a small engine is accentuated by men’s voices speaking rapid Spanish to one another; these fishers have the benefit of motor power. To complete the scene we end with the staccato of a bird’s call overhead.Have I been walking blindly through my life? I feel blessed to have the time and inclination to pause and take in my surroundings.
