We didn’t see this coming…

As I shared in a recent blog, my husband & I just purchased a 42 ft Hunter Passage Sailboat.   Two weekends ago was boat moving day, our splash-down cruise, and our first big excursion!  We moved the boat from Richmond County in Staten Island to Clinton, CT, on Long Island Sound.  It was planned out to be a 2-day journey.

Besides a few charter trips, Tom & I have been sailing on a 29-mile lake for the past 10+ years.  On a lake, you won’t find ferry boats, barges, or deal with tides.  Yes, there are danger buoys marking shallow spots along with crazy inexperienced boaters on pontoons and speed boats to contend with but otherwise, none of the big “dangers” we were about to be exposed to!  Were we nervous - Heck, YES!  At the same time, we were very excited to start living out the new boating life adventure.  

The biggest challenge we would face was getting through the East River, which takes you right through NYC.  Most warned about having perfect timing as you got to Hell’s Gate.   Time it wrong, and it could be horrible for you and your boat.  Due to stories we heard, the anxiety around this was high!  Luckily our friend who was with us had real-life experience and knowledge.  We ended up timing the entire first day perfectly.  Riding the tide into the east river, through Hell’s Gate, and then out the other side.  Making tremendous time and having a ball!  We made it to our first stop an hour ahead of schedule feeling amazing! We did it! 

We had expected the 2nd day to be a breeze (no pun intended), hoping to actually sail a little bit and get to our new marina home with ease.  The wind gods were not in our favor for the direction we were going, so we ended up motoring more than sailing, but it was a perfect weather day.  We were starting to get used to Libra and her to us. You could sense she was happy to be out on open waters and free to go! We were in awe of this new sense of freedom ourselves!  No longer landlocked on a lake but free to go anywhere!  

The 2nd day was much slower going, but we were still making decent timing.  Then things started to go awry.  The GPS monitor wasn’t working correctly and kept showing the boat icon heading in another direction, making it hard to decipher. Since it was the first time trying to find our new marina, we were trying to look for landmarks but had no idea WHAT we should even be looking for.  (we were used to the farm on the hill being our beacon home on the lake - LOL).   We finally figured out where we needed to be and headed in that direction despite the boat icon looking like it was going sidewise now.  Then just a few miles away from our marina, it happened….

Moving slowly along through the channel, we noticed that some of the channel markers appeared to be missing.  I was at the helm, wondering if we hug the green buoy that was only 20 yards from the beach or go out a little bit where the red buoy SHOULD have been.  We decided surely we didn’t want to be that close to the beach, so I went starboard (right). 

Suddenly a bump, and then it happened we just stopped… Yes, We grounded!   

 I was at the helm, but all 3 of us chose wrong!

We tried to force the boat out of the mud and ended up calling the local Sea Tow, but even he couldn’t get us out.  To be honest, I was grateful when he stopped trying as I was scared (as was my husband) that the forcing was going to cause more damage to Libra than just letting her sit in the mud.  It became evident all we could do was wait for the tide to come in.   We settled in for what was a 3-hour wait.  Luckily I had plenty of provisions for dinner and beverages.  I fixed us dinner while the guys tried to figure out the GPS.  Then we all enjoyed a lovely sunset and, despite being stuck, reveled in the last few day's journeys. 

As I reflect back on our 2-day excursion, I can’t help but see the parallels between this boating adventure and anytime anyone wants to do something they’ve never done before.  I shared these lessons in a recent podcast - Tides of Change: Patience and Timing in Achieving Your Goals! and I wanted to recap them here. Whether it be finding your calling, creating a new business, or running a marathon, these three biggest lessons learned might help you get there with more ease & joy! 

The three lessons learned:

1. The biggest fears are often just the stories we tell ourselves and others.  We will never overcome them unless we choose to face them head-on!  Often when we do face them, we realize they aren’t as scary as the story we made up in our heads! 

2. What can stop us dead in our tracks are often seemly little things that sneak up on us.  They seem to appear out of nowhere, but in reality, they are the real fears that are buried deep inside of us.  These are the actual fears that are masked by what we say is holding us back.  Often, they are the hardest to see. 

3. When you do get stuck, and you will at some point if you are pursuing big things in life, sometimes the best thing to do is patiently wait on God’s natural timing. Trying to force things to move quicker could ultimately cause more damage to your ego, your business, and sometimes even your reputation.  Just like we had to wait on the tide to come in, sometimes we have to wait for the right timing for our new venture in life to take off naturally.   When that happens, take in the scenery, be proud of how far you’ve come, and take note of what you can learn from the experience. 

What else did we learn from our experience? 

Besides that, we need to hug the green buoy; despite it being so close to the beach, we need to learn to watch the tides very closely. Plus, always have plenty of food & beverages on board for unexpected stops.   But mostly, we learned that we can do this! We can face our biggest fears and challenges head-on and overcome them, whether it be on Libra or in real life!  

What fear are you ready to face &  conquer?  Share in the comments below, or send me an email! I’d really love to hear from you!

Listen the full episode here:

PS… if one of the fears you have to conquer includes deciding if it’s time to make a major career change. Or perhaps you know it’s time, but you aren’t sure how to create a plan to change careers in 2023. The “10 Signs It’s Time to Quit Your Job” Quiz was created for dynamic, amazing women like you! In less than 5 minutes, you can gain clarity on whether you should stay or should you go…