This is episode forty-four of the novel Two Tamas in Paradise. There are fifty episodes. This is the fourth novel in the Trace Troy South Pacific Adventure series.
It may now be purchased on Amazon. It is available in paperback or Kindle digital format.
The Good Course
Stormy weather greeted the day. Trace decided to wait for it to pass before beginning the return voyage. The small opening in the coral reef posed a threat. Shortly after noon, the bad weather passed. The seas and skies seemed as one; clear, calm, and blue.
The Tramp Islander seemed as if she agreed with all that occurred; the experience, the change in people, and the decisions made.
Trace sat at the wheel. His face could not hide the contentment he felt. Adam sat on the aft bench. The sea breezes washed worry from his face. Makani worked in the galley. Sage and Coyote played hearts at the mess table. The passengers retired for an afternoon nap; emotions and disappointment left them exhausted.
Adam walked into the pilothouse. “It is strange how things come back to you.”
“Such as?” Trace said, turning to face Adam.
“Just the feel of the sea beneath you,” Adam said. “It is a strange memory; how something feels. You know, sights, sounds, and smells bring back memories, but feelings, not the feel of something, but how you feel. Sometimes you walk into a strange room and you think, Have I been here before? It feels familiar. It’s just a feeling I can’t quite grasp.”
“Feelings are sometimes the hardest things to define,” Trace said. “It’s like you can’t find the words, so you keep talking.”
“Yeah,” Adam said, “you either find out what’s going on or just run out of words.”
“Sometimes I sit here,” Trace said. “Suddenly, something flashes over me. For a moment, I’m on the Bering, on the bridge of my ship up there. A couple of days later, another feeling, a good feeling, comes over me. I’m leaning against a fence watching the sun set, and I hear a steer call out. That’s a good sound. Do you think that means I’m ready to come home?”
“When you’re ready to come home, you won’t wonder,” Adam said, “you’ll just start packing your bags.”
“What about you?” Trace said. “Are your bags packed?”
“No,” Adam said. “I needed to get away. I don’t know why. I just did. I wanted to come back here. For some reason, I think I left something here. Sometimes you leave home, and you have that feeling you left something behind. You pat down your pockets, scratch your head, and go back into the house, and look for what you think you forgot. You don’t know what. You just know you forgot something. Then you see it; it’s your pocket knife, it’s your list, it’s something. You know something ain’t right. Sometimes it’s nothing more than making sure nothing is left behind.”
“Did you leave something behind here?” Trace said.
“I’ve thought about that,” Adam said. “I wonder if I only want to be reminded that at one time I was young and full of adventure. I wanted the challenge of uncertainty in my life. The sea is full of uncertainty and challenges. Did I want that again? I don’t know. But I do think I wanted to live some things over.”
“How are you doing so far?” Trace asked.
“Good,” Adam smiled. “This trip reminds me of the old days. It seemed like The Tiki, Tramp Islander, attracted certain types of passengers and cargo. People who wanted to go somewhere without a lot of notice. They always brought more than their baggage. Kind of like the folks we have onboard now. Different people, odd, adventuresome, secretive, and desperate. Yeah, you kind of look at this boat, it might seem to some the last resort, or who would look for me here?”
“I’ve thought the same things,” Trace said.
“Of course you have,” Adam said, “you are my son.”
“What about us, Dad?” Trace said. “Are we that sort?”
“Nah,” Adam said, “we are the privileged few who have been chosen to take those folks on their journey.”
“In a way, we should be grateful to them,” Trace said.
Adam grinned. “Not all the time. But I’d like to think I’ve helped a few folks. Take the folks we have on board now; maybe their lives will be better from this point on. There’s a great deal of satisfaction in thinking you had a small part. The rest is really up to them.”
“You make it seem as if hauling cargo is a side job,” Trace said.
“Maybe everything is a side job,” Adam said. “Whatever we do isn’t it to make life better for others? There’s only a few who know that. That makes our own life a lot more meaningful.”
“When you came here the first time, were you looking to find meaning for your life?” Trace said.
“Yes,” Adam said.” I didn’t know it then. Back on the ranch, I began to see that. So why did you come here, Son?”
“At first, I thought I’d find something mysterious and untouchable that you found,” Trace said. “I wanted to see the things you saw, and hoped that it would impact my life.”
“Has it?” Adam asked.
“The beauty of this place is enchanting,” Trace said. “But it’s just that. For me, it’s standing on my own, facing adversity, not overcoming the sea, but understanding it, and working with it. Life is much like that. Storms, rogue waves, strange people, confusing events come along—you navigate through them.”
“Speaking of which,” Adam said, “how are we doing?”
Trace looked at the instruments and smiled at Adam. “Right on course.”
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