Anytime on or near the water is always special. For me, it renews my spirit and makes me forget for a short time all of life’s real or self-imposed stresses. It can also be exhilarating.

A few weeks ago, Paul, my son-in-law and I got underway for a few hours. At first the winds were light. But within the first hour, the winds picked up to 25 knots gusting to 30 knots. I let Paul take the helm. It was awesome. My Tartan 34-2 just took off.

Serenity is many things to many people. On this day, for Paul and I, it was embracing the wind and learning to be one with our boat.