Jibe, spinnaker, halyard, go-about, lee-ho, jack stay, keel – these are a few new words I heard being used today. Having grown up in the plains of North India, I have not travelled by sail-boats before. Today was my first proper ride in a 36 foot yacht. To start with, everything seemed really messy. Everyone got on to the boat and got busy while I watched them, trying to make sense of things. At one point the boat was nearly on it’s side with me holding on tight for dear life. The ‘skipper’ was as cool as a cucumber. Hmm. Impressive. But, not enough to make me feel relaxed.

It was mid-morning and the sun was beating down upon us. After a while I moved on to the cabin roof and sat facing the bow. The view was magnificent and I could see us riding the waves in a soothing, rhythmic manner. All was ok. I consciously relaxed my body and decided to go with the flow, to allow myself to feel every bit of the up and down swings, to listen to the sounds of the waves and the wind and be one with all of it. That is when I started to enjoy myself. The harmony I felt within was reassuring.

I had the choice of sitting in the corner holding on to the rails and feeling tense but I am glad I stepped out of it. Going with the ebb and flow of life and relaxing into each phase is the thing to do, I suppose.

At the dinner table, there was a vacant third chair which was as painful as a dagger in my side. I remembered all the happy times with my son around food, the last time we went out for a meal, his favourite dishes…… Well, that was one phase and this is another.