The Kayak and the Cruise Ship

Every summer in our place on Lake Michigan, there’s a moment when the lake is calm enough that we push the canoe down to the water. It’s always a pleasure to paddle through the still waters, dock on a beach further down, swim and canoe back. Sometimes we go through the outlet to the back lake where the current is yet calmer and once there, a few moments where we set down the paddles and just drift. 40 years ago (!), on my 33^rd birthday, I wrote this haiku: 

 

My oar at rest

Drifting, drifting

Suddenly, the other shore!

 

My nod to the idea that we should trust in the beneficence of the universe, just savor each moment and know that the world will bring us to the place just right. 

 

But my experience is that to achieve anything that draws us nearer to our life’s purpose and destiny, we need to set our sights on a destination and paddle like crazy to get there, often up stream or with the wind in our faces. At least I do. And as confessed earlier, often with the hope that some big ship is going to come in and reward me for my efforts, pick me up, take me on board and sail off into the sunset of fame and fortune. 

 

Last September, I got to ride a kayak on the back lake and liked that even better than the canoe. More bi-lateral arm movement and snug in that low seat, yet closer to the water. So why this ambition for the ocean liner? The kayak is the more connected conversation between man (in my case) and nature. The pleasure of propelling myself at the speed I choose through my own efforts, steering precisely where I need to go and yes, remembering to just drift and equally savor that feeling— of course, this is the far better choice and why should I ever complain that my “ship” is a kayak? 

 

Truth be told, I’ve never been on a cruise ship and I imagine I would enjoy it up to a point for a week or so. But as a lifestyle choice, the ostentatious enormous vessel with its pre-programmed entertainment and excessive food and 45 minutes to run off the ship and hit the tourist spots in town buying up all the pointless souvenirs is not the ship I want to sail on into the future. So kayak it is and someday this ambitious fellow will learn to be wholly content with what the world offers.