Möbius has made it to the Bahamas, and we are currently anchored off Black Point in the Exumas. On our passage to the Exumas, we crossed over the 7,000 nautical mile mark in our voyage since leaving our boat’s birth place in Turkey. This afternoon, Wayne and I are relaxing and not moving the boat from point A to point B. If you could be a fly on the wall in our boat, you would see us both sitting at the main salon table working on our computers, our two dogs sleeping on the bench seats beside us. I’ve been researching the weather for the upcoming crossing to the Abacos, and Wayne has been doing the mid-month financial research and account management that keeps the cruising kitty replenished. If you were not able to look out the window at the stunning pale turquoise water around us, you would not know which of the 10-12 countries we’ve visited in the six months was our location.
I enjoyed your take on it tremendously. Amazing backstory too. You're right. Home is a feeling. I lived on two continents. And every time I moved, I knew whether my new place felt like home. It felt familiar, and I had that feeling that I was home. Whenever a life chapter ended, I lost that feeling, and if I went back, I could no longer find the things that had made that place wonderful in the first, so there was nothing for me there other than the memories. I didn't have the same perception. It's an interesting thing and nostalgic in so many ways.
Growing up in our family, we were given an appreciation for travel and change. I’ve also been thinking about home and where I’m really from. California was where I went to school, worked and lived all over the state. But since Susan and I got married, we’ve owned a dozen houses in five states and moved 20 times. We fix up every place we live from planting gardens, trees, to rehabbing interiors with new walls, windows, basements, and bathrooms. Something about trying to make a new home is creative and inspiring. But where am I from? Don’t really know - except where we are now always seems like home!
Reminds of the line Where ever I hang my hat is my home. I grew up in Seattle but when serving in the Coast Guard we were all over the country. After retirement we bought a RV and traveled all over the USA. We have finally settled but it doesn't feel like home. Home is now just wherever we happen to be.
My wife and I lived on a 48 ft ketch for 8 years so I can relate. The boat was all the home we needed. Just getting into your free book and enjoying your writing, but you sure weren't kidding about noir. I used to write a little and would like to get back into it. Started a Substack here and not sure where I'm going with it. Was planning some nautical fiction, but had to get a few political rants off my chest first! Can hardly wait to find out. Keep writing.
Though I only started traveling 6 months ago, I totally get this, Christine! Thanks for verbalizing many of the things I've been feeling about my relationship with "home" lately. Like you, I'm also from Southern California (O.C. to be specific), and I agree, it only feels like home because my friends and family are still there. Their presence is what makes that area of the world worth returning to time and time again. Thanks for sharing this post :))
As a former boat kid myself this really resonated! I now live in the Czech Republic--and it is “home” but it will never feel as much like home as the first sight of the ocean when coming from a trip ashore.
Great post and pics. Glad I found you. My husband and I live on our sailboat and I feel exactly the same way. Home is aboard Watchfire, but not in any specific location. My newest author bio says I live aboard my boat, "Somewhere on the west coast of North America"!
Making Waves, Richard S. Hillman’s fourth work of fiction, takes you on a trip around the world. The novella delivers an exciting, eye-opening, vicarious experience. A must read for anyone who loves stories in international settings.
“Hillman has created a captivating tale that combines a travelogue, human interest stories, and a search for meaning in a world awash with inequality and injustice.”
Based loosely on the author’s true educational excursion with a shipful of students and professors, Making Waves explores and highlights beautiful port cities as well as some sleazy neighborhoods in Latin America, Africa, and Asia. The fictitious characters in this story expand their horizons, at times struggling with inner demons and flirting with danger.
A significant sub-plot follows the personal odyssey of an interracial couple. Along with their fellow travelers on this journey, Josh and Camila woefully discover pervasive racism, misogyny, and extreme disparity in income distribution. Will their experience inspire action?
Richard S. Hillman’s “thought-provoking and entertaining novella” Making Waves is available through Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Books-a-Million, and select bookstores.
For information on the author and his notable publications, see:
I think you would enjoy reading Making Waves. At the end the novella "returns home" in an unusual way that you will identify with. BTW -- we met at Writers in Paradise at Eckerd College many years ago. Happy sailing!
I enjoyed your take on it tremendously. Amazing backstory too. You're right. Home is a feeling. I lived on two continents. And every time I moved, I knew whether my new place felt like home. It felt familiar, and I had that feeling that I was home. Whenever a life chapter ended, I lost that feeling, and if I went back, I could no longer find the things that had made that place wonderful in the first, so there was nothing for me there other than the memories. I didn't have the same perception. It's an interesting thing and nostalgic in so many ways.
Growing up in our family, we were given an appreciation for travel and change. I’ve also been thinking about home and where I’m really from. California was where I went to school, worked and lived all over the state. But since Susan and I got married, we’ve owned a dozen houses in five states and moved 20 times. We fix up every place we live from planting gardens, trees, to rehabbing interiors with new walls, windows, basements, and bathrooms. Something about trying to make a new home is creative and inspiring. But where am I from? Don’t really know - except where we are now always seems like home!
Reminds of the line Where ever I hang my hat is my home. I grew up in Seattle but when serving in the Coast Guard we were all over the country. After retirement we bought a RV and traveled all over the USA. We have finally settled but it doesn't feel like home. Home is now just wherever we happen to be.
My wife and I lived on a 48 ft ketch for 8 years so I can relate. The boat was all the home we needed. Just getting into your free book and enjoying your writing, but you sure weren't kidding about noir. I used to write a little and would like to get back into it. Started a Substack here and not sure where I'm going with it. Was planning some nautical fiction, but had to get a few political rants off my chest first! Can hardly wait to find out. Keep writing.
"Not sure home is a place for me anymore."
Though I only started traveling 6 months ago, I totally get this, Christine! Thanks for verbalizing many of the things I've been feeling about my relationship with "home" lately. Like you, I'm also from Southern California (O.C. to be specific), and I agree, it only feels like home because my friends and family are still there. Their presence is what makes that area of the world worth returning to time and time again. Thanks for sharing this post :))
Agree! Home is where your Love is.
As a former boat kid myself this really resonated! I now live in the Czech Republic--and it is “home” but it will never feel as much like home as the first sight of the ocean when coming from a trip ashore.
Great post and pics. Glad I found you. My husband and I live on our sailboat and I feel exactly the same way. Home is aboard Watchfire, but not in any specific location. My newest author bio says I live aboard my boat, "Somewhere on the west coast of North America"!
Press Release: Peppertree Press
April 2023
Making Waves, Richard S. Hillman’s fourth work of fiction, takes you on a trip around the world. The novella delivers an exciting, eye-opening, vicarious experience. A must read for anyone who loves stories in international settings.
“Hillman has created a captivating tale that combines a travelogue, human interest stories, and a search for meaning in a world awash with inequality and injustice.”
Based loosely on the author’s true educational excursion with a shipful of students and professors, Making Waves explores and highlights beautiful port cities as well as some sleazy neighborhoods in Latin America, Africa, and Asia. The fictitious characters in this story expand their horizons, at times struggling with inner demons and flirting with danger.
A significant sub-plot follows the personal odyssey of an interracial couple. Along with their fellow travelers on this journey, Josh and Camila woefully discover pervasive racism, misogyny, and extreme disparity in income distribution. Will their experience inspire action?
Richard S. Hillman’s “thought-provoking and entertaining novella” Making Waves is available through Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Books-a-Million, and select bookstores.
For information on the author and his notable publications, see:
amazon.com/author/richardshillman
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1614938830?ref_=ast_author_dp&th=1&psc=1
I think you would enjoy reading Making Waves. At the end the novella "returns home" in an unusual way that you will identify with. BTW -- we met at Writers in Paradise at Eckerd College many years ago. Happy sailing!