Free Advice from Steve

For a slight change of pace, I thought I'd put in a short essay I wrote some time ago. I hope you enjoy it.

I was in deep lust several years ago with a young man I’ll call ‘Steve’.  Alas, the lust boat traveled one way only.  However, Steve and I were friends, and we met now and again for coffee and chitchat and one day he asked me a question.  My heart soared.  Perhaps the question would lead to something mutual?  Alas, it did not.  As luck would have it, we never saw each other again unless, like two ships, we merely passed, said our ‘hellos’ and kept going.

            The question Steve asked went something like, “If you were to sail around the world on a small boat, with whom would you choose to go?”  I immediately pictured me on a small, 30’ ketch (my uncle’s boat of choice) and the close quarters and realized that Steve had asked me quite a question.

            No matter how ‘large’ a sailboat, it is still very small, especially when out in the middle of the vastness of an ocean.  There is no place to go.  No one to call, cell phones don’t work.  Electricity is too precious to waste on anything but necessary lighting. No libraries except what one packs and space is of the essence.  No matter how one looks at it, it’s close quarters for a long time.  Who would I choose to be that close to for that length of time?

            How I wish I’d heard that question years earlier; it might have kept me from a couple of ‘bad’ marriages.  Then, again, probably not, for at the time, I was very, very sure I wanted to live with Mr. Right forever, if not in a sailboat, at least in a house.

            I’ve pondered Steve’s question many times since then.  Each time I meet a man, Steve’s question comes to mind.  I’ve met one man I could, I think, live with under such close quarters, but it will never be.  There is an age differential that neither of us wishes to deal with.  I’ve met several men with whom that question poses almost nightmarish answers.  And as soon as those answers come forth, I realize again, what a great question Steve asked me that day in Starbucks so many Octobers ago.

            I don’t know if Steve realized what great advice he dispensed.  But I took it, and it has made a most positive difference in my life.  For once, free advice was worth a king’s ransom, several times over.

My Gratefuls:
*Friends like 'Steve'
*Digital cameras
*Sailboats - big and small
*Good advice to keep me safe from monsters ;-)
*Family


What I am Reading:
*Disrupted Destiny, World History Through Islamic Eyes --by Tamim Ansari. As interesting as this book is, I still need to eventually turn out the light and get some sleep.
*Richard Wetherill: Anasazi - I'm almost through with it. Honest. Trust me.
*West Into the Night - I've barely begun it. I want to finish the other two before I get into it. The beginning is so beautifully written I know once I really get going, I won't want to put it down.

My Current Projects:
*I need to get back to and finish a couple of quilt tops
*Reworking of Jibutu and the Mage (novel)

Quote for this post:
"Asking a quilter to mend is like asking Picasso to paint your garage." -- Unknown