March 16th, 2021|
“Our eternal message of hope is that dawn will come.” -Martin Luther King, Jr. Indeed, dawn has come for millions of people hoping to emerge from the darkness of the pandemic. For Call of the Sea, it was one year ago that schooner Seaward’s Mexico voyage was cut short, our Spring educational sailing season was
December 21st, 2020|
On this shortest day of the year, this message will also be our shortest of the year: Call of the Sea, its vessels and crew, are hunkered down during the darkest hours of the pandemic, discouraged, but determined to sail again. We take comfort in hopeful words of others who have experienced darkness in
December 11th, 2020|
As darkness descends upon us, we in the Northern Hemisphere have found many ways to bring light and warmth into our lives. Celtic Fairy lights, Hanukkah candles, Tamil oil lamps, Christmas LEDs, Bhuddist lanterns, Yule logs, and wreaths adorned with lighted candles worn by Swedish girls singing at the feast of Saint Lucia--these are
November 27th, 2020|
Papa Hemingway’s writing means more to me now that I am old than when I was a boy and first read his last work of fiction. The short novel begins by describing what the main character, Santiago, did not have: “He was an old man who fished alone in a skiff in the Gulf
November 18th, 2020|
“Now is the Winter of our Discontent…” So begins the Shakespeare play about the corrupt and manipulative thirst for power and short reign of King Richard III. Centuries later, John Steinbeck borrowed this opening line for the title of his final novel, Winter of our Discontent (1961), a pessimistic tale about the
October 28th, 2020|
Was it the sea? Responding, maybe, to celestial force? To be safe, I prayed. I tried to be a better person. These words were written by Louise Gluck who won the Nobel Prize for Literature earlier this month. What a month it has been for women in the Bay Area. Here are
October 2nd, 2020|
“Some say the world will end in fire, Some say in ice. From what I’ve tasted of desire I hold with those who favor fire.” When Robert Frost wrote “Fire and Ice” in 1920, he could hardly have imagined that his native Bay Area would be under apocalyptic skies just a century later, and
August 7th, 2020|
In recent days it was as if we were in the 19th Century, sailing nicely after weeks in the doldrums, navigating with compass, sextant, watch and sketchy charts, and looking ahead with a spyglass. Far off in the distance there are faint flashes of light. Is a storm coming our way? There were no radar
June 25th, 2020|
Donate with your Credit Card Save On the Water Education Keep Call of the Sea Afloat Your donation today is needed to sustain Call of the Sea, its incredible vessels, its crew, and our mission: “to inspire people of all ages and backgrounds to connect with the sea
June 24th, 2020|
“The sea has known so many races, and bears testimony to none.” The Wind is Free, 1949, by Frank Wrightman (1896-1970) (b. South Africa) For centuries, much has been written about this distinctive attribute of the Sea: all those who sail upon it face the same elements: shifting winds, waves, tides, storms, and hidden shoals. For
